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Park View Road, Lytham, flooded in 1907.
The extraordinarily high tide flooded all the low-lying lands,
and in addition, in many places the embankments had been broken by the fury of the waves. Acres
of land were under water, and along the banks of the Ribble the farmers have suffered serious
losses from the drowning of sheep and poultry. At Lytham the Ribble Laundry suffered severely.
Boundary walls were thrown down by the onrush of the water, and the valuable plant was
submerged. The damage here is estimated at about £600. At Lytham Destructor Works the fires were
extinguished by water, and the stoker had a thrilling experience in making his escape. Houses in
the neighbourhood of the Shipyard were flooded, and the furniture was floating about.
At Ansdell and Fairhaven the hulking was broken in two places,
and the water, coming over the Marine Drive, washed portions of the sandshield away, along with
several tons of the ballast on which the temporary line of railway is laid. One of our
illustrations shows one of these fissures about ten feet deep and from thirty to forty feet
long.
The Outer Promenade (sea wall) and estate railway at Fairhaven was undermined in the
storm.
At St. Annes the damage was comparatively slight, owing to our first line of
defence, the stanner of stones. A number of row-boats had been placed under the Pier entrance for
safety, but these were washed out by the tide, and on Sunday morning they were found strewn along
the shore, several of them being damaged. The “Wild Duck” fishing boat was driven ashore on the top
of the stanner. The water came through the sandhills on North Drive and formed a lake, as shown in
the accompanying photograph. At the main sewer outlet near the Ormerod Home, the sea washed the
manhole bare, and a depth of three feet of brickwork were exposed to view.
The tide breached the dunes on Clifton Drive North near the Ormerod Home.
Ashore the wind did considerable damage by blowing in windows
and blowing the gable ends of houses down. The South Shore Fairground was damaged to the extent
of several thousand pounds. The sea circus was the principal sufferer, Tons of sand and water
were washed into it, and the engine room was severely damaged. The Water Chute and the other
shows and stalls will cost a large sum before they are restored to their former
condition.
At Blackpool, Chapel Street and Bonney Street were flooded to
the depth of several feet. Pedestrians were blown down and some of the iron pillars supporting
the railings on the Promenade were snapped off at the base. At Fleetwood, large tracts of land
were under water, and the contractor at the sewage works, which are in process of construction,
has suffered to the extent of £1,000 by the sweeping away of everything moveable. Across the
Wyre large losses have been sustained by the flooding of lowland and drowning of cattle and
sheep. It will take months to efface the effects of the storm.
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