THE first piece of a £30m sea defence scheme has been lifted into place.
The Environment Agency and Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council celebrated the installation of the first concrete section of the 2.7km long defence project.
About 1,000 pre-cast concrete units will be installed along Redcar seafront.
Environment Agency project manager James Mead said: "There are many advantages to using these pre-cast sections. By manufacturing off site, we can carry out the works quicker, reduce noise and disturbance and have a much lower environmental impact."
These first sections of wall are being put into place around the former Leo's Nightclub.
Over the past three months, 900 steel piles have been driven into a 450-metre section of the beach to support the sea wall.
The work, which is expected to be completed in spring 2013, will reduce the risk of flooding to 1,000 properties in the town.
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