THESE pictures show the scale of a huge cliff fall at a popular beauty spot that wiped out a public path.

People visiting Birling Gap have been urged to stay away from cliff edges and bases after a section cutting into the old path to the east of Belle tout lighthouse collapsed.

Aerial pictures from a drone above the beauty spot reveal the scale of the fall, with the path once used by visitors to walk alone destroyed.

The coastguard has since warned those visiting Birling Gap to stay well away from the cliff edge.

A spokesman said: "Hopefully this photo can serve as a reminder as to why we ask people to stay away from cliff edges and bases.

"This huge missing section has cut right into the old path to the east of Belle tout lighthouse.

"As you can see by the photo, collapses can happen a fair way In from the actual edge.

"Please, please, please stay away from the edge.

"In a coastal emergency dial 999 and ask for the coastguard!"

In the past year there have been almost 50 cliff falls in East Sussex, as well as 13 incidents of people being stranded on the beach after being cut off by the tide.

While a lot of people have been taking to the clifftops and going for beachside walks during the pandemic, the numbers are expected to rise as the weather improves and lockdown restrictions are eased.

Despite monitoring, the vast majority of cliff falls happen suddenly with no warning signs.

In May, Newhaven Coastguard issued a similar warning after a dog died after falling from the cliff at Seaford Head.

There was a large cliff fall at the same stretch of cliffs in March.

Rainy weather in February caused cliff tops to become crumbly and unstable, with coastguard crews responding to a series of dangerous incidents as a result.

A large gap which opened up in the coastal path between Seaford Head and Hope Gap had to be cordoned off.