Cliff collapse in Isle of Wight, England: 8 people rescued

Eight people were rescued after a cliff suddenly collapsed in Isle of Wight, England.

The incident occurred at about 4:40 pm local time on April 18, 2020, in Shanklin beach, a popular attraction located at the southwest coast of the Island. The failure was caught on camera. Click on the video below to watch it.

Two groups of visitors were taking a walk by the beach when the landslide occurred. Fortunately, no one was injured. The landslide blocked the path to the beach while the tide was about to come in. Therefore, people were rescued by a lifeboat.

The visitors were attending the site legally, respecting the socially distancing measures taken by the UK government to tackle the COVID-19 spread. “There is nothing to suggest these two separate groups were breaking lockdown rules. They were socially distancing from each other on a walk near to their homes. We’re thankful that no-one has been injured in the incident and that people did the right thing by calling 999 and asking for the Coastguard,” David Hurden, senior maritime operations officer for HM Coastguard, stated.

Search and rescue operations initiated to find any potential victims that could have been hit by the falling debris. Emergency crews and a coastguard helicopter were deployed but, eventually, no victims were found. 

The causes of the ground failure have not been identified yet but, according to James Potter, Rescue Officer for the Ventnor Coastguard Rescue Team, the stability of coastal slopes deteriorates and cliffs are vulnerable to landsliding when they dry out.  "At the moment it's very unstable the cliff with the amount of rain that we've had over the winter. With those cliffs drying out now, those areas are becoming quite unstable. The cliff is very dry, very crumbly now," Potter said. Dry weather results in cracks initiation and propagation, especially at the top of the cliffs. Those cracks reduce the stability of the slope and may eventually lead to a total failure.

On April 7, 2020, a major cliff failure occurred between Shanklin and Luccombe. About a month earlier, another cliff collapse was reported in Shanklin beach near Hope Road. Fortunately, no victims were reported in both cases. 

Those incidents suggest that cliff failures may occur frequently, especially at this period of the year. Therefore, authorities advised people to stay away from the coastal area as similar collapses could result in casualties. They stated that no coastal region is safe as unexpected events may occur everywhere.