Part of historic pier washes away in 'wild' storm

Part of a historic pier has washed away as Storm Ingrid brings heavy rain and strong winds to Devon and Cornwall.

Teignmouth mayor Cate Williams said the town had "taken a real battering" overnight into Saturday with "just wild" waves damaging part of the Teignmouth Grand Pier.

A Met Office yellow warning for rain is in place until 22:00 GMT and the Environment Agency said flood warnings were in place across the south Devon and south Cornwall coasts.

Great Western Railway said the line between Exeter St Davids and Plymouth would remain shut until at least 14:00 because a "significant amount of debris" was on the track at Dawlish due to waves breaching the sea wall.

Teignmouth's mayor said it was "sad" to see part of the resort's pier, which opened in 1867, washed away.

"It has lost part of the pier structure itself, that has dissolved and gone away into the sea," she said.

"It's an old pier and it was needing some attention and I suppose age and wear and tear has taken its toll.

"It has survived many weather conditions as well as world wars. It's sad when you look at it now to see some of it now missing."

Trees have also come down across the region, with one blocking both lanes of the A377 near Lapford, Devon County Council said.

Cornwall Council warned trees might still be weak or unstable following Storm Goretti.

GWR said the sea wall at Dawlish would be inspected once the storm had passed.

The firm advised passengers to avoid rail travel until later with tickets remaining valid on Sunday.

GWR spokesman James Davis said: "There's been a significant amount of debris that the sea has thrown onto the track that will need to be cleared before we can run trains safely.

"The line remains closed and we have a limited bus replacement service operating.

"Clearly, if the same number of people choose to travel as normal you're going to find yourself waiting quite some time."