MEMBERS of a Waterside sailing club have been left reeling after hearing the plug could be pulled on a flood defence scheme which it claims could put hundreds of new homes at risk.

Marchwood Yacht Club has spent the past four years hammering out the details of the project with New Forest District Council.

The club, situated on the banks of Southampton Water, is at high risk of flooding but just days before work was due to start civic chiefs said they could no longer afford it.

Deluges

Club members fear the inevitable deluges will not only swamp the clubhouse but also a new 350-home estate behind it.

Council Cabinet bosses will consider the future of the scheme but not until March at the earliest because they want time to consult with the club.

Commodore Derek Saxby, of the 600-member organisation, said: "It was a total shock. We are in a perilous situation. Every time we get the mega tides and a low-pressure system we really have to be on alert."

High tides

The club, which gets a minimum of six exceptionally high tides a year, has made three major insurance claims in the past 30 years.

The last was in 1998 when a foot of water flooded the clubhouse, off Magazine Lane, causing £26,500 worth of damage.

The private club was asked to contribute £53,000 towards the council scheme.

Developer Crest Nicholson Residential (South) Ltd built flood defences around much of the new Admiralty Quay estate in 2002, which civic chiefs say adequately protects the homes there.

The district council was due to complete flood defences around the entire site, which would have shielded the yacht club. A public footpath network around the site was also due to be completed to provide access to the waterfront.

Matt Moore, of Admiralty Quay Residents' Association, said: "This has been planned for years. Everyone who bought here bought the whole package and the rug has been pulled from underneath us."

Civic bosses had secured at least £215,000 towards the work through contributions from Crest but now says it cannot afford its share.

John Ward, the council's head of policy design and information, said they could not afford soaring tender costs but would not reveal any figures.

He added: "We share very strongly the yacht club's feelings that this is a major disappointment.

"I am sure when we have all dusted ourselves off in a few months' time, we will get positive about where we can go from here."

He stressed the council was under no legal obligation to do the work.