Mind the gap! Breathtaking drone video shows demolition and reconstruction of Victorian hotel the Birling Gap after it was threatened with destruction from cliff edge erosion

A historic hotel on the Sussex coastline is being demolished and rebuilt after erosion threatened to destroy it and take it out to sea. The historic Birling Gap hotel on the Sussex coastline is being demolished and rebuilt after erosion threatened to destroy it and take it out to sea Workers can be seen ripping the tiles off the hotel's roof and driving diggers carrying debris as walkers take in the winter sun on the beach down below The astonishing work, conducted within metres of the cliff edge, has been captured on video by a drone flying overhead The work is making slow progress with men in high visibility jackets and hard hats stripping tiles off one by one on the heavily-scaffolded side of the hotel closer to the cliff edge The hotel, which is used as a cafe by the National Trust, is set to be moved brick by brick further away from the eroding cliff edge, with a visitor centre due to sit on the shoreline. Tiles are being removed by hand and kept onsite for re-use, as are the hotel's bricks The hotel, which is used as a cafe by the National Trust, is set to be moved brick by brick further away from the eroding cliff edge, with a visitor centre due to sit on the shoreline As the white cliffs continued to wear away last year, the Trust decided to move the cafe and visitor centre towards the back of the building Studies carried out for the conservation body revealed that the cliff edge is likely to recede by as much as 25-30m by 2036 The cliffs at nearby Seven Sisters are thought to be eroding at a rate of 60cm every year but the rate at the Birling Gap is believed to be much quicker. The work is making slow progress with men in high visibility jackets and hard hats stripping tiles off one by one on the heavily-scaffolded side of the hotel closer to the cliff edge. The drone then pans out to show the vast green landscape that lies behind the iconic hotel and the white cliffs that sit below it Planning documents were submitted to the South Downs National Park authority in early 2023, detailing the careful steps taken in the destruction process as the threat of cliff falls continues The hotel first appeared in the 1909-10 edition of the Ordnance Survey map and has remained a mainstay for visitors looking for stunning views out to sea The Birling Gap hotel, with the exception of the attached cottage, was built entirely between 1878 and 1909 The National Trust acquired the site in 1982 and made improvements such as building a staircase to the beach The body later took on the hotel in 2012 and converted it into a cafe, shop, exhibition space and office The Trust has already had to pull down an ice cream parlour and sun lounging area for the same reason In November a National Trust spokesperson told MailOnline that the coastline had been 'constantly changing due to rising sea levels, erosion and weathering' 'If you go and stand on the beach at Birling Gap and look at the rock face, you'll see you have chalk on either side.'