Walton beach hut owners call for better promenade repairs

Beach huts in Walton have been left vulnerable to the elements following what was two weeks of devastating weather in February, which has seen some sea defences suffer and crumble.

Large parts of the concrete walls, which run along Eastcliff beach between Hopkins Tea Rooms and the Last Fisherman’s Cafe, had completely broken away.

Other sections of the promenade had disintegrated and still remain unstable, posing a risk to the public and those who walk along the seafront.

Sarah Stimson, who runs the Walton Beach Huts group, has warned residents to take care when out walking and to stay away from the edge of the promenade.

She has also claimed the damage caused by Storm Ciara and Storm Dennis could have been mitigated had Tendring Council carried out vital repairs sooner.

“That particular path is in a terrible condition and the storms did quite substantial damage,” she said.

“It was marked out to be repaired last winter, but then spring came and still nothing was repaired.

“As a result, the damage is far worse than it should have been, and more regular repairs would prevent that.

“As a beach hut owner, I protect my huts by boarding them up.”

Tendring Council says it has now carried out some temporary infill works, in a bid to stop water from getting in underneath the promenade, but this is only a short-term solution.

Sarah said: “My fear is that it won’t be temporary and we’ll get to the summer and it won’t be fixed - just like last year.

“It looks like some repairs have been made.”

Referring to future restoration works on Walton seafront, a spokesman for Tendring Council said plans need to first be carefully considered.

“Promenades and sea defences are by their nature complex structures, and any repairs need to be well thought-out,” he said.

“Recent storms will have an impact on these structures, and a long-term approach to their maintenance needs to be considered.”