Overnight, between Friday evening and Saturday morning, a significant landslip occurred at the St Lawrence end of Undercliff Drive leading to sections of the land dropping 5-6 feet.
Locals told OnTheWight they thought parts of the disturbed topsoil had moved as much as 20m over the weekend.
Fears of 2001
Residents tell OnTheWight they fear the cracks that are appearing on the tarmac have very similar characteristics to those that appeared in 2001, before the major landslip in the area.
As all Island residents will be aware, the rain falling on the Isle of Wight has been significantly above normal levels.
Location
For those that know the area, the slip is at the section that was previously restricted to one-way, controlled by traffic lights.
Other major engineering works are being carried out along the road nearer to Ventnor, so residents were having to use the now-collapsed route to Niton to get between their homes and the outside world. Since Saturday morning, they have been told to exit via the other direction, toward Ventnor, as the Niton route has become impassable by car.
Local residents told OnTheWight the tarmac that used to cover that side of the road, on the slipped section of road, was removed some time back by the contractors.
Comparison photos
These photos show the site as it was back in the middle of January compared to how the similar views were this past Saturday and Sunday.
Click on them to see the photos full screen.
Video
Here’s a video that was shot on the Sunday. Please be aware that it was very windy at the time, so sections of the video are very noisy.
http://youtu.be/cARvUhmADXk
Photo gallery
A selection of the photos that were take at the site over this past weekend.
Click on them to see the photos full screen.
Island Roads response
Update 16:44 – We contacted Island Roads straight after publishing to ask:-
- In Island Road’s judgement, what has happened and what has caused it?
- What actions can be carried out to reassure residents?
- What actions are being put in place for a speedy resolution?
They replied to those questions with the following:-
“The geotechnical works at the Undercliff which are taking place in four sections of the highway have been progressing well and in accordance with our planned programme of work. However, at one of these sections, close to the caravan park, the recent storms and flooding has resulted in significant ground movement which has caused further damage to the highway.
“We have been undertaking daily visits to inspect the site to try and keep the road open, however following further ground movement over the weekend, the road condition means it is now impassable for vehicle traffic.
“We have therefore taken the decision to close the road to all but pedestrian traffic and will be closely monitoring it over the next few days before making a decision about the continuation of works in this area.
“We are keeping local residents and businesses in the affected area informed and will be updating them on any decisions we make. Work on the remaining sections of the Undercliff is unaffected and is continuing as normal.”
