A coastwatch station near Great Yarmouth has closed with staff blaming 'a lack of support from local government'.
The mobile lookout unit in Caister, part of the National Coastwatch Institute (NCI), shut down on August 31 after members decided at a meeting it was no longer viable to run the station.
The lookout was run by local members of the NCI, a voluntary organisation providing visual watch along the UK's coast - not to be confused with HM Coastguard.
Previously, it had been operated from Caister Lifeboat Station on Skippers Walk - but in 2020 as a result of the pandemic they had to move to a mobile unit on Second Avenue.
According to the minutes of a meeting of Caister NCI which took place on August 8, the mobile unit was "a functional stop-gap" but "far from an effective and permanent solution for a watchstation".
One station member, who did not wish to be named, said that during winter months the mobile unit was often cold, with no electricity, and had to rely on a wind turbine and batteries to keep going.
It is understood that the station manager retired and members were struggling to find a replacement.
At the August meeting, the group decided to close the unit. The minutes state the reason was "a lack of support from the local government organisations and significant financial support from NCI nationally".
Last year, the watch station approached both Caister and Ormesby with Scratby parish councils for support in setting up a new watchtower.
The minutes of the August meeting state that "Caister Parish Council was adamant it did not wish to be involved with the station old or new".
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But Kevin Wood, chairman of Caister Parish Council, has disputed this claim.
He said that Caister NCI did approach them last year but that the parish council was powerless to help the group until a planning application had been submitted to Great Yarmouth Borough Council (GYBC).
"We were happy for them to use the car park at Second Avenue, and we're saddened as a parish to be losing the watch station," he said.
Caister Coastwatch also approached Ormesby with Scratby Parish Council to talk about an outline idea for a new station.
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Phil Nathan, parish council chairman, said: "We had the group come and present their ideas to council.
"There was concern that this original proposal would take up the two disabled access parking spots which are important to the community and visitors alike."
They arranged to meet the group and GYBC on-site and looked at options.
"After discussions, an area was identified where the proposed semi-permanent building could be housed with power supplies linked to Scratby toilets, where the parish council would manage hedgerows and areas to maximise sight lines and all parking spaces would be preserved.
"A win-win for everyone."
Mr Nathan said the parish council was waiting for the planning application for the building and its final design and position.
"We have had the group present at meetings, had on-site discussion and maintained an open dialogue, but now, as I have said, we wait for the application," he added.
It is believed that Caister Coastwatch also went to the national NCI organisation for help but they were told to raise £25,000 to build a new station.
NCI has declined to comment.
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Efforts were also made to move back to Caister Lifeboat station - "but to no avail", the minutes stated.
Paul Garrod, chairman of Caister Lifeboat, said: "They wanted to come back to the lifeboat station but with the new boat coming, we need that lookout for the new technology.
"If it wasn't for the new boat, we'd have them back tomorrow but really sadly we can't have them back.
"It's really sad that's closing. It's certainly an asset to the coastline along Caister," he added.
A Maritime and Coastguard Agency spokesperson said: "We are very grateful for the efforts over many years of the NCI's watch station and its staff at Caister.
"HM Coastguard retains a comprehensive search and rescue capability around the coast of Norfolk and Suffolk with a full range of units including helicopters, Coastguard rescue teams and lifeboats."
Great Yarmouth Borough Council has also been approached for comment.
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