Vandals Wreck Historic Tynemouth Pier Just Days After Reopening

Tynemouth's historic North Pier has been forced to close just one week after reopening, after vandals caused an estimated £20,000 worth of damage at the much-loved North East landmark.

Eight glass pavement blocks close to the lighthouse were smashed during the incident on Wednesday, leaving broken glass scattered across the area and forcing the Port of Tyne to withdraw public access.

The timing is particularly frustrating for people in Tynemouth, North Tyneside and nearby Newcastle after years of disruption caused by storm damage and extensive restoration work.

The Port of Tyne said the vandalism has not only made the area unsafe for visitors but also left sensitive equipment connected to the lighthouse's navigation systems vulnerable.

Pier had undergone a multimillion-pound restoration.

The closure comes after a major programme to repair the North and South piers following devastating damage caused by Storm Babet in October 2023.

The Port of Tyne previously put the combined restoration programme at £4.5 million. Storm Babet battered the structures with waves reaching up to nine metres and winds of up to 70 knots, damaging walls, paving, handrails, steps and lighthouse infrastructure.

Specialist granite was brought in for the North Pier, while later work included replacement pavement lights, new handrails and repairs to the roundhouse.

After such a lengthy restoration, the latest closure just days after visitors were welcomed back is likely to cause considerable frustration along the Newcastle and North Tyneside coast.

Vandalism has caused problems before.

This is not the first time deliberate damage has affected the historic piers.

During restoration work in 2024, the Port reported a spate of vandalism and unauthorised access that caused delays and additional costs. Officials even considered introducing 24-hour security at both sites.

Problems continued in 2025. The Port said there had been several incidents of unauthorised access and vandalism to newly restored items, while contractors had also experienced abusive behaviour. One person caught trespassing in a restricted area of South Shields Pier was fined £1,009.

The latest incident therefore comes despite repeated warnings about protecting the structures.

Tynemouth Pier has stood for more than a century.

North Pier is far more than a popular coastal walk.

The structure extends 899 metres into the sea from Tynemouth Priory and plays an important role in sheltering the entrance to the River Tyne. Its first foundations were laid in 1854, when around 3,000 tonnes of stone were used.

The pier was completed in 1895 but was almost destroyed by a storm only two years later. It was eventually rebuilt in 1909 by engineer John Wolfe-Barry, who was also closely associated with the construction of London's Tower Bridge.

Today the North and South piers are Grade II-listed structures as well as working pieces of maritime infrastructure.

Closure hits one of the North East's busiest coastal areas.

The vandalism also comes in an area heavily dependent on visitors from Newcastle and across the wider region.

North Tyneside attracts around six million visitors annually, according to council monitoring data. Around 5.3 million day visits were recorded during 2023, with tourism worth approximately £409 million to the borough that year.

Previous council figures also recorded almost 2.5 million visits to Tynemouth, Cullercoats, Whitley Bay and North Shields Fish Quay between April and September 2022 alone.

The Port of Tyne has thanked those who used the newly reopened pier responsibly and said access will remain restricted while the damaged area is made safe.

For thousands of Newcastle and North East residents who have waited years to walk the pier again, seeing it closed after only a week will make the estimated £20,000 act of vandalism particularly difficult to swallow.

Share your views.

What should happen to those found responsible for the damage caused?