A Tenby town councillor has slammed Pembrokeshire County Council for failing to tackle persistent flooding on the B4318 effectively, impacting local and visitor access - suggesting that they would rather squander their millions on building pointless footbridges in Haverfordwest!

With one of the main routes in and out of Tenby continually hit by flooding, and motorists driving through the flood water being labelled ‘stupid’ - town councillor Charles Dale has taken a pop at the Local Authority for its own ‘stupidity’ in continuing to not rectify the issue with a long term solution.

The B4318 at Gumfreston, connecting Tenby to St Florence and Carew, and routes beyond, leading to Pembroke, seems to be closed more of late, than actually open, in light of the many named storms that have hit the locality, along with heavy rainfall and high tides, causing the road to be impacted with tidal locking, river flooding and field run off.

The road has even been dubbed the ‘Gumfreston graveyard’ at times, with images of abandoned cars galore regularly shared!

Further flooding of routes around the Ridgeway, Penally and Manorbier only lead to compound the struggle for those simply attempting to get in and out of Tenby, especially those travelling to work in the seaside town.

With Storm Barn hitting Pembrokeshire, the debate around the road, and the Local Authority’s perceived lack of action in alleviating the matter, continues to rumble on, for both locals and visitors alike.

With footage shared in the Facebook group Gumfreston Flood Updates of vehicles getting stuck in the flood water, due to drivers ignoring warning signs of the road being impassable, comments have again been aimed at PCC for failing to deal with the issue that has been ongoing for decades.

Giving his views on the issue, Tenby Town councillor and well-known local actor, Cllr Charles Dale commented: “Stupidity is Pembrokeshire County Council allowing this to happen to the residents of Tenby every year - and it’s getting worse - while at the same time spending millions on a ridiculous bridge that nobody needs and yet more millions turning a car park and bus stop into, guess what...a car park and bus stop!

Cllr Dale went onto sarcastically state: “I’ve actually put in a request to move the the new £5.8 million pound bridge from Haverfordwest (where it serves no purpose whatsoever) to the bottom of Gumfreston Hill.

“That should solve the problem of flooding once and for all!”

County councillor for the wards of Gumfreston and St Florence, Cllr Rhys Jordan has called the matter ‘a predictable cycle of disruption each autumn and winter’ - having previously raised issues about improvements to the flood warning system.

Cllr Jordan remarked earlier this year, when severe flooding had once again hit the locality: “It feels like the road is underwater every few days.

“While raising the road remains the ideal solution, I must be honest; despite my best efforts, this is unlikely to happen in the near future. That said, I will not stop fighting for the improvements we need.”