Seafront clock damaged in Storm Arwen set to return by the end of the month

Grant’s Clock, located opposite the former Rex Hotel, was damaged during last year’s brutal storm.

Storm Arwen left approximately 18,000 North East homes without power and claimed the lives of three people across the UK.

The storm saw the clock face torn from its column back in November last year.

North Tyneside Council aims to unveil the restored landmark by May 28 with the mayor doing the honours.

Whitley Bay councillor John O’Shea said: “The Grant’s Clock on the seafront is an iconic feature. It was destroyed during Storm Arwen and many people have been asking what was happening with it.

“It was sent away to Derby for specialist repairs and the plan will be to return it by the end of this month, and I am hopeful it will be returned.”

The clockface was sent to Smith of Derby, a clock making, servicing, and restoration firm.

Established in 1856, the business services and manufactures clocks across the globe. The cost of repairs has been estimated at around £15,000.

Northumberland’s Brizlee Wood saw the highest recorded windspeed of the storm, recording gusts of 98 miles an hour.

This was the highest recorded windspeed in Northumberland since January 16 1984, where winds reached speeds of up to 102 miles per hour or 89 knots.

Nationally, Storm Arwen plunged more than a million homes into darkness at some point between November 26 and November 27.

Around 100,000 households were left without power for days. According to government figures, 3,032 homes were left without electricity for a week or more.

The storm also wreaked havoc for local wildlife as, according to a Met office report, hundreds of grey seals were swept away from the North Sea coast.

The National Trust also reported on damaged ecology throughout the UK including the loss of numerous trees.