A series of rockfalls in the south west continued as a section of the Dorset coast came crumbling down in a dramatic video. Experts say that climate change is a driving cause

The rare moment a section of Britain's crumbling Jurassic Coast collapsed has been caught on camera.

Hundreds of tonnes of rock and soil slipped from the 200ft cliff at Seatown in Dorset without warning. Luckily it happened at a remote section of the beach where hardly any tourists go and so there was no risk of anyone getting hurt.

The video of the dramatic rockfall was shot by Simon Miles of Lyme Bay RIB Charter. He was taking a group of 10 customers on a sight-seeing tour of the coast and was 400m off shore when it happened.

Simon said: "You could see that section of cliff was much darker than the rest of it so it looked like some movement had already happened. We went in closer to have a look and waited about 10 minutes before it fell away completely and blocked the beach. These falls happen quite regularly but it is unusual to get one on video, especially from out to sea."

There have been a series of dramatic rock falls that have occurred along the west Dorset coast this year. The cliffs are made up of sandstone rock which is porous and acts like a sponge with rainwater which seeps down through it and weakens it over time. At the same time strong waves whipped up by winter storms batter the base of the cliffs which also helps destabilise them.

Geologist Richard Edmonds believes the rockfalls were a consequence of global warming. He said: "We are experiencing extreme weather both in terms of the waves and rainfall. A warmer atmosphere carries more water and more energy and that's what drives storms. The energy in the atmosphere is transferred into wind and rain.

"The sea undermines the base of the cliffs so the more powerful the waves are, the more it is undermined. That has created these massive overhangs and this illustrates the continuing dangers of the cliffs."

A Dorset Council spokesperson said: "Rockfalls and landslips can happen at any time. If people are out on the coast then they should take notice of warning signs and keep to existing paths and stay away from the edge and the base of cliffs."