Seaside businesses were counting the cost after gale-force winds and heavy rains battered the coast.

The bank holiday weekend was a wash-out for resorts in Tendring, which rely on holidaymakers to set the cash tills rolling for the season ahead.

Instead of the picture postcard scenes enjoyed a few weeks ago, the district was hit by severe weather yesterday.

The Met Office issued warnings of heavy rain during the morning, when up to 15mm of rain was expected in just three hours.

The Thames Coastguard, at Walton, recorded winds of gale-force eight.

Clacton firefighters cleared a tree fallen across Harwich Road in Beaumont at about 9.50am.

Pierre Oxley, chairman of Clacton Chamber of Trade and Tourism, said the town was badly affected.

"Bank holiday weekends are really important for seaside resorts," he explained.

"The Easter bank holiday was a disaster, and the one in early May wasn't that great either.

"We've still got June to go, but in reality we've only got 16 weeks of the summer season left, so let's hope things improve."