The
dramatic redrawing of the map and loss of features at Oddicombe and
Little Oddicombe are the result of the catastrophic landslip above
Little Oddicombe in 2013. The postcard (above) by Charles Thomas Howard
would, in hindsight, have afforded builders and Torquay Corporation vital clues for the
future demise of the once beautiful tourist destination. The question has to be asked: Would you have built a house at letter B on the postcard?
Charles
Thomas Howard's (1865-1942) interpretation is most interesting. The
presence of the cliff railway (letter A) dates the postcard as post
1926 but the absence of the ill-fated Ridgemont House (built 1930's) on
the headland (letter B) narrows the date of painting to around
1928. The breccia and red sandstone division (letter C) has gone as has the interesting geological breccia stack (letter D) slightly offshore of the Gentlemen's Bathing Place. The sea-stack was swept aside by a horizontal, high velocity run out lobe.
The geological fault line running down the valley (directly behind B & C) was long known and despite the open cast, inherently unstable red sandstone cliff, no measures were put into place before the slip commenced in February of 2010. By then, it was too late to halt the forces of nature.
Thursday, December 04, 2014
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