IT’S hard to believe that five years have passed since the devastating Valentine’s Day storms that battered the Dorset coast.
If we thought the snow that hit the county at the end of January was bad, it’s certainly worth casting our memories back to 2014.
Dubbed the Valentine’s Day storm, lives were in danger as winds of up to 80mph and waves more than 30ft high pounded coastal areas.
Roofs were torn from homes, there were landslides and power cuts, lorries toppled over with the force of the wind and hundreds of people were evacuated.
A major incident was declared with police, the military, Dorset Councils, the Environment Agency and volunteers all helping keep people safe and clean up the damage.
Here are some pictures – and some incredible stories – from our archives, looking back at the storms that we will remember for a long time to come.
- West Bay was battered by the weather from early February, with the Esplanade closed and some residents evacuated due to the hurricane-like conditions. Residents said it 'was like a bomb had gone off'. These people ventured out in the morning to discover their car had been buried under roofing felt that was torn off their home.
- High-sided vehicles were kept away from the A35 between Bridport and Dorchester as the winds whipped up but it was too late to topple a lorry at Askerswell and a van which blew over at Winterbourne Abbas.
West Bay Road was closed when a huge tree fell down - it had to be removed using a JCB.
West Bay Road was closed when a huge tree fell down - it had to be removed using a JCB.
- Speaking of trees being blown down, this one closed the A35 between Bridport and Dorchester for more than two hours when it blocked the road at Winterbourne Abbas
- Lyme Regis residents called it 'the worst storm in 50 years' with the Cobb swamped by massive waves. Gail Pitter caught these pictures of the storm in full force, plus the devastation it wreaked to Lyme Regis beach:
- Waves at West Bay threw up shingle with such force that cars parked well away from the beach had windows smashed. The Old Shipyard facing the sea at West Bay had part of its roof ripped away and arcing power cables meant a power cut for some households.
- And the weather caused a massive cliff fall at East Beach in West Bay - luckily no one was caught in it.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here