The aftermath of yesterday's torrential downpours have now been revealed in Ventnor, where extreme amounts of water caused significant damage to one of the city's most iconic roads.
Shore Hill, one of the main access routes to Ventnor's boardwalk, suffered extensive damage after the city received nearly 10cm of rain in just a few hours. The staggering amount of water overwhelmed drainage systems with extreme pressure that lifted road surfaces and raised fears of a possible landslide.
After several hours of being closed for safety reasons while Island Roads personnel inspected the road and its structure, the route was reopened last night under temporary traffic lights. Assessments are continuing and traffic management is expected to be in place for a considerable period of time, with further closures expected in the near future to allow for damage to be repaired.
The road surface has been completely raised along several of the road sidewalks and large cracks can be seen extending along the side of the road closest to the drop. The manhole covers have also been damaged with the surface around them bubbling and rising.
At the height of yesterday's incident, so much water was running across and down the road that the children's pool on the boardwalk was completely underwater, with the familiar shape of the Isle of Wight invisible. Thanks to the work of a local resident, the pool has been cleaned and refilled with clean water.
It is not yet known if any damage has occurred under the road, but engineers are ready to continue investigating.
CLOCK: The aftermath of the torrential floods that saw Ventnor's Shore Hill rip apart.
