A WARNING has been issued over potential landslips in Lyme Regis following the stormy weather battering the south coast.

The cliff faces at Monmouth beach have seen a steady flow of rock falls and mud slides this week after they were battered by winds and torrential rain over the past two weeks.

Now experts and the authorities are urging residents to take care if they do go to the beaches over the next few weeks, as the bad weather is set to continue.

Richard Edmonds, earth science manager for the Jurassic Coast team, said: “These weather conditions and this heavy rain do lead to more rock falls and mud slides.

“Predicting when the next movement might be is not an exact science, but there is a lot of movement at the moment especially on Monmouth Beach.

“There is no sign of movement yet by the chalets but for people who might use it, what I would say is to be aware of potential movement because of the weather, and to keep an eye on it as the weather changes.”

During the worst of the weather, there was a constant flow of rock falls and mud slides from the cliffs on Monmouth beach, prompting fears there may be a significant movement of land during the expected bad weather in to the New Year.

Mr Edmonds added: “When it rains heavily like it is now the cliff face on Monmouth Beach looks like a giant melting chocolate cake because there is consistent movement. If people do go on to the beaches, they need to stay away from the base of the cliffs as obviously in this weather there is a greater frequency in the falls. People need to be careful and stay away from the cliffs at all times.”

The warnings of a potential landslip come almost 12 months after a significant movement last year left a chalet hanging over Ware Cliff and Monmouth Beach, resulting in the closures of both areas and the coastal footpath.

John Wright, Town Clerk for Lyme Regis Town Council, confirmed the council had briefed its employees what action to take in the event of a landslip.

Mr Wright said: “If something major happens people should call the emergency services who would then alert us, and we would then be able to assist them in numerous ways, such as providing sand bags to help with water diversion.

“We are available all the time throughout the festive period and into the new year and what we have done as well is made sure all of our front line staff are aware of our emergency procedures and what to do if something major happens. All of the front line staff have mine and the operations manager’s phone numbers so if something did happen we could respond immediately.”

An amber warning for flooding was issued for Lyme Regis harbour by the Met Office earlier in the week, and the authorities are bracing themselves for more bad weather as we enter the New Year.