A large cliff section collapsing onto a beach in Cornwall was caught on camera by a woman taking her dog for a walk.

Deborah Smith witnessed the dramatic coastal erosion at Lyntone Cliffs near Bude around 4pm on Monday afternoon, when she “saw the rocks moving and quickly videoed it” using her mobile phone.

Ms Smith, 54, said she ran away from the cliff edge shortly after the land plunged onto the beach below.

“I’ve never walked that particular area before and I was just wandering along taking pictures of the sunset, like you do,” she said.

“I saw some little chunks of the cliff fall off and roll down so I started to video it. Then the massive bit just collapsed, it was so scary – I legged it away.

“It made a hell of a noise too – very loud. I definitely didn't expect to see something like that happen.”

No one was injured in the land collapse. Falmouth Coastguard said the incident had been reported to them and they issued a warning to walkers in the area to take care.

Environmental experts have warned of the dangers of landslips in Cornwall and elsewhere along the British coastline.