Only one of the caravans at Trimingham House Caravan Park, about five miles east of Cromer, was being used and the woman and her child were led to safety following the cliff fall.
Tony Garbutt, coastguard sector commander in north Norfolk, said: “There was only one person who was occupying a caravan who was in danger and she was removed safely with her child. We then removed all her belongings to render that safe and then we went about making the site safe so we disconnected utilities and there are about six caravans that really need to be pulled back from the cliff over the next two to three days.”
Coastguards said the landslip wasn’t caused by coastal erosion, instead it was a build up of water in the cliff following heavy rain in December. As the water seeps down through the sandy earth it makes the cliff unstable and gravity takes over. They are now warning people to stay clear of the beach in case there are further falls in the next few weeks.
“The cliff as it is at the moment is still unstable so there is still movement there and the next two to three days will tell us if there is going to be any further movement,” said Mr Garbutt. “Some of the cliff that has fallen is still moving down the side of the cliff. The biggest problem is the soil which has been deposited on the beach is made up of sand and a lot of silt and when you mix that with water that becomes very sticky. So the safety message to the public would be please don’t clamber all over it as you can get yourself into danger.”
It is the second landslip along the stretch of coast in a month. Trimingham House Caravan Park is spread over 23 acres and has 180 static caravans and holiday homes.
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