RELENTLESS bad weather has once again wreaked havoc in Barmouth.

The sea wall defending the town was washed away by an onslaught of high waves last week and the slipway at the northern end of the town has collapsed. The worst of the weather occurred on 23 December, which lead to scenes of devastation.

The damage occurred just weeks after an 80-foot tree was brought crashing down in a residential area of the town by high winds during Storm Barney.

Barmouth community councillor Rob Triggs witnessed the damage first hand.

“I’ve seen photos and I went for a look on Christmas Eve to see what had happened,” Cllr Triggs told the Cambrian News.

“We haven’t heard anything yet official as a community council because a lot of people aren’t working right now.

“There were stones scattered all across the front and they’ve closed the road as a safety measure.”

Cllr Triggs believes that some of the damage to the sea wall could have been avoided.

“It seems like there wasn’t enough mortar in the cement so the stones weren’t bound together properly,” he continued.

“The same thing happened a couple of years ago when we had those terrible storms so I don’t know if they’ve been repaired properly.”

A Gwynedd Council spokesperson said it had been monitoring the beach levels in Barmouth for a considerable period of time, adding: “Over recent months the beach level has been decreasing due to natural coastal processes that affect beach levels on certain areas of the coast.

“The drawdown on beach levels has affected the base of the access ramp situated at the north of Barmouth beach to such an extent that the ramp has been closed to the public on the grounds of public safety.

“Repairing the structure will be a lengthy process and will be undertaken after further analysis of the beach levels and further surveys of the structure have been undertaken.

“Over the Christmas period, the high tides and strong winds experienced caused damage to a short section of the wall separating the highway from Barmouth promenade.

“This damage will be repaired in due course.”