• Chesil Beach
  • Introduction
  • Description
  • Formation
  • Storms
  • Pebbles
  • Species lists
• Fleet Lagoon
  • Description
  • Designations
  • Species
• Hamm Beach
  • Introduction
  • Formation
  • Recreation
  • Designations
    • Plant list
• Chesil Beach home

Chesil Beach can be severely affected by significant storm events. Depending on the how strong the wind is and the way in which the wind direction varies, a storm can affect the beach in various ways. These include a major redistribution of the pebbles and overtopping of the beach. A major overtopping can cause flooding in Chiswell and/or the upper Fleet. If the water level in Lyme Bay rises due to a storm surge in the Channel water can flow through the beach and push out large cavities in the back of the beach known as canns.

In addition to storm events, the beach very occasionally experiences swell events. these can occur when the weather is calm. They are triggered by major Atlantic storms which push big swell waves up the Channel to impact on west-facing beaches such as Chesil. The last major swell event was in February 1979 when very large swell waves caused considerable overtopping of the beach with resulting flooding in Chiswell.

This page lists significant storm events on Chesil Beach

14th November 2009 - Winds reached force 10 with slight over-topping of Chesil beach

10th March 2008 - Minor over-topping

3rd November 2005 - minor flooding on Portland Beach Road

25th January 1990 - Damage to Cove House Inn

17th December 1989 - Major overtopping event with strandline well down Fleet side of beach

16th October 1987 - Hurricane force winds further east (The 'TV' hurricane)

13th February 1979 - large swell over-topped Chesil Beach causing severe flooding

13th December 1978 - severe over-topping of the beach

26th February 1978 - overtopping

15th October 1976

11th February 1974

18th January 1962

1st December 1954

27th November 1954

13th December 1942

11th November 1936 - over-topping

January 1924

14th March 1914

13th February 1914

February 1904 - swell event

13th February 1889

3rd September 1883

25th November 1872 - Royal Adelaide wrecked near Ferrybridge

2nd December 1865

28th November 1838

23rd November 1824 - The Great Storm