Cottage left teetering on cliff edge following massive landslip

The thatched cottage is now just 40ft away from the edge of a 400ft drop at Sidmouth cliffs in Devon.

A house has been left teetering on the brink of a 400ft drop following a massive cliff fall along the Jurassic Coast.

The thatched cottage is now just 40ft away from the edge of the unstable Sidmouth cliffs in Devon.

Coastal erosion — The cottage sits around 40ft from a cliff edge with a 400ft drop, following a small rockfall directly below and a significantly large cliff collapse a few hundred meters away, on a cliff top area between Sidmouth and Ladram Bay (Ben Birchall/PA)

This in turn caused a smaller rockfall directly below the thatched property, bringing it perilously close to the edge of the 400ft drop.

Drone footage of the 185 million-year old sandstone cliffs showed the magnitude of the landslip – and the risk it poses to both homeowners and members of the public venturing onto the beach.

“Cliff falls are a natural and unpredictable occurrence along the East Devon coast.

“This is because the rock from which the cliffs are formed is soft, and therefore prone to rock falls, and landslides, which can happen at any time.”

There was another cliff collapse in Sidmouth in August 2022 which came after hot weather cracked the earth.

In March 2020, large chunks of the Sidmouth cliffs gave way in two separate collapses, sending rocks and sand tumbling down to the beach, just yards away from where people were stood.

The East Devon District Council reminded visitors to “stay well clear” of the cliffs when walking on the beach, with Coastguard advising that beach users put a distance equivalent to the heigh of the cliff between them and the cliff base.