Cliff collapse near Hastings

And in another time and place:-

A chance decision to stop and pick up a seashell meant a Wells couple narrowly missed being crushed to death by 300 tonnes of rock that came tumbling off a cliff in Dorset.

Tim Cambridge and partner Tamara Pollard, from West Horrington, were just a few feet away when the rocks crashed down onto the beach at Burton Bradstock

It was only because trainee teacher Tamara, who is six months pregnant, paused to pick up a shell on the beach that they didn't walk under the mass of falling rock.

The huge boulders that fell down the 150ft cliff would have instantly killed the couple.

The limestone cliff that collapsed measured about 30ft across.

"Tim shouted "stop, stop!" and we looked at the cliffs and I couldn't see anything," Ms Pollard, 45, told the Daily Mail newspaper.

"Then all of a sudden these big boulders rolled down the cliff and out along the beach towards the sea.

"It all took about five seconds or so to come down.

"It made the most horrendous crash, I was terrified.

"I screamed and we looked up, I didn't know what was going to happen or if more was going to come down.

"I had stopped to pick up a beautiful shell for my six-year-old daughter Rose at that moment. If we hadn't done that we would have been flattened.

"We were so lucky and it makes you aware of the power of nature."

Mr Cambridge, a computer engineer, said: "We stopped to look up because I felt something was happening.

"You could hear an almighty roar as it came down right in front of us."

After a narrow escape the couple had to wade into the chilly water around the huge pile of rock that had blocked their path on the beach.

They then sought sanctuary at a nearby cafe where they had a hot chocolate to steady their nerves.

Mr Cambridge added: "We were both frightened but focussed on getting off the beach."

It is thought that water falls between the large cracks in the cliff and freezes in the cold weather, causing them to fall down.

Read more: http://www.legacythisissomerset.co.uk/Shell-stop-Dorset-beach-gives-Somerset-couple/story-15298400-detail/story.html#ixzz2pZxUFCXg

Read more: http://www.legacythisissomerset.co.uk/Shell-stop-Dorset-beach-gives-Somerset-couple/story-15298400-detail/story.html#ixzz2pZxCUbOA