Millions of uncooked chips washed up on a south coast beach on Sunday – in some places more than two feet deep.
The chips, many still in their plastic bags, appeared strewn on the beach as the tide receded on Falling Sands beach near Beachy Head and Eastbourne.
The fries are believed to have been those housed in at least 20 huge containers that washed overboard from two ships in the English Channel during a storm.
Currents have brought them up en masse to East Sussex beaches.
The chips – minus fish – are believed to have spewed out of the metal containers as they were buffeted by waves.
The discovery comes just two weeks after huge numbers of bananas were washed ashore near Selsey, West Sussex, after containers they were being shipped to the UK in also fell overboard from a ship.
Joel Bonnici, who lives in Eastbourne, told the BBC in Sussex that he ‘had to look twice’ when he went for a walk in Falling Sands.
‘The beach looked like the Caribbean golden sands,’ he said.
In some places there were more than two feet of chips piled on Falling Sands beach in East Sussex
Joel Bonnici said that he discovered the chip covered beach while on a walk along the coast
Many of the chips were still in their bags and are believed to have washed ashore after at least 20 massive shipping containers fell from two ships in storms in the English Channel
‘In some areas, the chips were two-and-a-half feet deep into the ground. Among the unusual sightings of washed-up items – including onions found earlier this week – nothing compares with this.’
A call-out for volunteers has been issued on a community Facebook page to encourage residents to help clear up the chips, Mr Bonnici added.
‘Removing the plastic bags is a priority,’ he added.
He said there was a small colony of seals nearby and the bags posed a danger to them.
‘I scuba dive quite regularly and I know what seals are like – if they see the bags they will play with them or try to eat them.’
Three shipping containers washed up at Seaford in East Sussex on Tuesday.
A spokesperson for the Coastguard said a container off Littlehampton, West Sussex, was also recovered, along with debris off Beachy Head.
‘An aircraft was sent to survey the area on Friday and no further containers were spotted offshore,’ they added.
Seagulls were spoilt for choice at Falling Sands yesterday as millions of chips covered the beach
Volunteers have been called to clear up the plastic bags that litter the East Sussex coastline in the area
Mr Bonnici is particularly worried that seals might try to eat the plastic bags floating in the sea
‘Among the unusual sightings of washed-up items – including onions found earlier this week – nothing compares with this,’ said Mr Bonnici
They said containers which washed up at Selsey, Eastbourne, Newhaven, Rustington, Rottingdean and Beachy Head are being monitored.
They came ashore a month after 16 containers fell from the cargo vessel Baltic Klipper near the Isle of Wight and days after several containers fell from two more ships off the island during Storm Goretti.
East Sussex County Council has urged members of the public to take extra care if they are visiting the coastline.
‘Please keep dogs on leads as some of the food items washing onto the shoreline may be harmful to them,’ a spokesperson added.
