Walking out onto the beach at the start of the August bank holiday weekend, one would have been forgiven for mistaking it for winter!
Storm Lillian hit the UK on 21st / 22nd August, bringing high winds and a lot of rain! Camber, as usual, took a hit with the wind but, fortunately, it was not the worst storm we have seen and, on reflection, not very much damage was sustained around the village. The strong winds had shifted the sand on the beach. It had piled up against the homes and businesses in much the same way as it does throughout the winter.
In the aftermath, on Friday 24th, there was a very high tide, reaching close to Central Car Park (but not breaching it). The wind dropped and it could almost be described as a pleasant day.
However, on the Saturday, as the village filled with long-weekenders, the rain fell – and, boy-oh-boy did it come down! It is reported that we had a couple of weeks’ worth of rain on that one day!
Unfortunately, for the second time this year, the combination of sand in the wind and heavy rainfall caused the pump on Old Lydd Road to clog up and fail. This led to flooding on Old Lydd Road, similar to that which we reported in the February newsletter. It was, in fact, worse this time. The flood stretched from Central Car Park to the turning by Rye Bay Café. Water covered the pavements and seeped into driveways, and into both Dunes Avenue and Sea Road.
Luckily, the rain stopped on the Sunday, but the high wind remained. The flood water started to recede a little but it was still across the width of the road, even though the pavements were now passable.
The maintenance team arrived but left soon after, having not been near the pump itself, perhaps they didn’t have the parts needed for the job! Fortunately, it was all sorted out by Monday afternoon – just as the Bank Holiday weekend came to a close.
