Villagers in south Devon are stranded after a storm destroyed a road that connects them to the outside world.
The coastal road, the A379 into Torcross was destroyed and swept into the sea after being thrashed by 12ft waves and 60mph winds when a storm hit the region earlier this month.
Not only the road, but also a pub, Start Bay Inn was damaged along with several other neighbouring houses.
The road runs along a two-mile stretch, parallel to a narrow shingle bar between Torcross and nearby Slapton, nicknamed the “Slapton Line”.
Now destroyed, the road used to be how people travelled to the south Devon village.
Drivers are now having to take a 45-minute detour if they want to reach Slapton or Dartmouth.
Properties situated on the promenade were also damaged by rough waves coming over the sea wall.
Alleyways were also filled with waist-deep water.
Residents are now having to take a 45-minute detour to get to their village
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Speaking to the Daily Mail, landlady of the Start Bay Inn, Gail Stubbs, said the destruction in the village is ongoing, warning that the loss of coastal protection has left homes and businesses “wide open” to further harm.
She said: “We’re having to close at five o’clock today, just so I can make sure no one gets hurt.
“If the water comes in and gets into the electrics, you might get a fire as well.”
The damage is estimated to cost £18million, which is well over the Liberal Democrat-run Devon County Council’s budget, with hopes that the central government will help fit the bill, but this is not confirmed.
The highway repairs are likely to take over a year to complete
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In a village hall meeting, residents got angry, it has been reported, as the county council leader Julian Brazil explained that government funding was limited.
Residents in Torcross were creative with how the infrastructure can be fixed in the meantime, such as the army building a pontoon bridge, the bridge being funded through the foreign aid budget, making it a toll road to fund its repair and a kelp bank to protect the coastline.
The beach was famously used to rehearse the D-Day landings because of its resemblance to Utah Beach in Normandy, but Mrs Stubbs said it now “looks more like a warzone than ever”.
Even if funding can be secured to cover the estimated £18 million cost of repairing 200 metres of severely damaged road, work may not be completed until 2027.
The destruction of both the road and the sea defences has already had a devastating impact on local businesses, including Mrs Stubbs’ pub.
Mrs Stubbs said: “Last time the road was closed it was shut for eight months right through the season and our turnover was down by 50 per cent.
“That’s obviously a worry. We don’t know whether to plan for a season being fully open, half open, or not open at all.”
She also revealed fears circulating within the community that compulsory purchase orders could be imposed on properties, although this has not been confirmed.
“I don’t know how serious that is, but it’s really frightening,” she said.
Around 300,000 visitors typically travel to Torcross each summer.
With one access road now unusable, drivers must take long detours along narrow country lanes to reach Slapton or Dartmouth.
Mrs Stubbs said she was forced to stop and reverse 22 times on one such journey.
The landlady said: “The beach has gone, and the material in front of the village isn’t there anymore, so we’re just getting hit a lot worse.
“We really need a bit of urgent help. People keep asking about the road, but my personal priority is the village.
Mrs Stubbs’ inn dates back to the 1400s, and she fears repeated storms could erase that history entirely.
Experts agree the damage is significant.
Professor Gerd Masselink of the University of Plymouth, speaking to the Daily Mail, described the destruction as “the biggest change that’s happened here in the last 10 years”, adding that the storm caused the equivalent of more than six years’ worth of erosion in a single event.
The community has now launched a petition with Liberal Democrat MP Caroline Voaden to secure funding to repair both the road and the sea wall, as concerns grow that without urgent intervention, Torcross could face an uncertain future.