A place only for the bold as Doris batters Blackpool

Yesterday was no different as storm Doris battered the Fylde cost.

The Gazette’s Rob Stocks reported live from the seafront – watched more than 300,000 times on Facebook – so readers could experience the storm from the safety of their homes places of work.

In his own words, this is what he found.

“Blackpool’s Promenade was a place reserved for only the bold as Storm Doris threw her full force at the Fylde Coast.

With gusts reaching 80mph, Blackpool took a battering.

And The Gazette braved the wild conditions to take a brief walk on the sea front.

Even on the landward side of the road the conditions were difficult, not helped by blowing spray and foam.

Crossing at the Solaris Centre there were noticeably fewer cars on the Promenade but amazingly Blackpool’s hard-as-nails trams were still running.

Climbing onto the sea wall it was hard to see how.

Even two hours after high tide waves were battering the sea wall.

The spray carried in the wind felt like hailstones, being flung at high speed and quickly turning skin red raw.

The ferocity of the storm in that exposed spot was not to be underestimated, walking into the onslaught proving heavy going.

Holding a conversation was near impossible due to the sound of the wind and waves, which smashed into the sea defences sending sea water clouds flying over the Prom.

A few minutes was more than enough to get a clear impression of just how unpleasant and dangerous a place the sea front was to be. It took far longer to dry out!