‘Beyond exasperating’ - Fears for environment as car gets stuck on flooded beach road

Edward Couzens-Lake, from Brancaster, spotted the black hatchback on the flooded beach access road in the village’s north on Saturday (April 20) morning.

Mr Couzens-Lake said vehicles getting stuck and being abandoned was a regular occurrence on that stretch of road, which is surrounded by low-lying marshes and is part of the Norfolk Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB).

He said: “Whenever there is a tide of around 8 metres at Brancaster, the water, invariably, covers the road. If there is a northerly wind behind the incoming tide, then it will be higher and stay on the road longer.

“This means most of the road is covered-it can be up to three feet deep in places on a really high tide.”

The water-covered road at Brancaster in north-west Norfolk. Picture: EDWARD COUZENS-LAKE (Image: Archant)

But Mr Couzens-Lake, who has lived in the village his whole life, said this did not deter people from trying to drive down it.

He said: “The water is deeper than they think and, once it covers the exhaust or reaches the engine, the car will stall.

“People’s ignorance of a flood tide and their stubborn attempts to prove something by driving through it, and failing, year after year, is beyond exasperating.”

But Mr Couzens-Lake motorists getting stuck there was not only dangerous for themselves and their vehicles, but also the area, which is also a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI).

He said: “Quite apart from the fact a stuck or abandoned car leaks oils and other fluids into a precious wildlife environment and ecosystem, the corrosive effects of the salt water will cause the car enormous damage very quickly and likely cause, if untreated immediately, the bottom to rust away very quickly.”

Mr Couzens-Lake urged drivers to think twice about trying to drive down the road when it was under water.