Storm damage to West Hoe Pier could cost extra £200,000

West Hoe Pier was hit "at most vulnerable" stage

Damage to the Grade II listed West Hoe Pier in Plymouth caused by the recent storms could put an extra £200,000 on the repair bill, the city council has confirmed.

Experts are assessing new damage to the pier after Storm Ingrid battered the city on Friday along with damage to Tinside Bay and the Council House in Armada Way where the authority holds its meetings.

The pier had been undergoing works to strengthen it including filling the interior with concrete and stone.

At a council meeting on Monday, Cllr Chis Penberthy (Lab, St Peter and the Waterfront), cabinet member for housing, cooperative development and communities, said timing the works was difficult as weather events were becoming “increasingly more frequent and of greater intensity”.

He said the council had avoided the summer so it was not a building site in the tourist season and wanted to keep disruption to businesses to a minimum but works due to take place at the end of the last summer had to be put back because the volume of material requiring excavation was more than anticipated and took additional time to remove.

This delayed the programme and the pouring of concrete.

Cllr Penberthy said when the first storm hit the pier was “at its most vulnerable”

Focus had shifted to recovery and working closely with contractors and consultants “flexibly and rapidly” to mitigate the damage.

The main works are being funded from an approved capital budget for repairs and maintenance with a contingency allowance for unseen events such as storms.

Cllr Penberthy said the increased costs would be between £150,000 and £200,000 and could  be absorbed into that contingency without affecting other projects.

In a statement, Plymouth City Council said Storm Ingrid, which followed Storm Goretti earlier in January, resulted in some additional deterioration to the pier, with part of inner wall experiencing some collapse of grout which meant the outer wall was susceptible. 

However, this did not affect the next planned pour of concrete.

“A section of face stone and rubble fill of the outer face of the pier head failed caused by back wash of the waves,” it said. “The structure in this area was weakened in the initial storm but was not accessible from the pier or via the excavation. The project team have formulated a solution which likely be undertaken during phase two.

A building surveyor and contractor are assessing damage today (Tuesday) at Tinside steps, which are used by swimmers to get into the sea at Tinside Bay after they were also battered by the storm on Friday.

“Due to the time of year and poor weather, options for immediate repair will be limited, so our focus will be to secure and make safe any immediate hazards,” said the council. “We will then plan any necessary repairs that may be needed once weather conditions allow.”

The council added that there had not been any wider issues of storm damage reported to the team detailing with repairs.