Erosion forces beach cafe to shut

The Shore Break stands on girders and stilts

A beach cafe has been forced to close amid fears it could collapse after part of a sea wall fell away in heavy swell.

A stretch of defences next to the Shore Break cafe in Felixstowe was damaged on Saturday.

Suffolk Coastal Council has now ordered the cafe to shut because of doubts about its safety, and for emergency work to be carried out.

Steve Bloomfield, who runs the cafe, said it had come at a particularly bad time ahead of the busy summer season.

He spent Wednesday morning doing a final stock take at the cafe and informing regulars of the decision.

He told BBC News: "We were doing better than we ever have.

"It couldn't have come at a worse time for us - you spend the winter getting into debt expecting to make it up in the summer and now we have missed out on that."

Defeated by weather

Mr Bloomfield, who has run the cafe with his wife for the past three years, said even if it did reopen in the future it would be too late for them since they now need to find other work.

The Shore Break is standing on girders supported at the rear by the promenade and at the front by stilts down to the beach.

Deputy council leader Councillor Andy Smith said: "We must now admit that we have been defeated by the weather.

"We have held off taking this action until we have been left with no choice as we did not want to see the closure of a local business and the loss of a facility well liked and used by residents and tourists alike."