Storm has devastating impact on Gold Coast beaches
The storm only lasted a couple of hours, but its damages will be visible for weeks, maybe months.
After huge rainfalls and strong winds on the 20th and 21st of May in Queensland extensive areas are devasted. The beaches of the Gold Coast lost great amounts of sand. The City Council already started moving sand but according to a construction worker on Mainbeach, “it will take weeks for the beach to recover.”
Gold Coast Lifeguards closed the beaches for two days. The waves have been still too strong. The Lifeguards are also concerned that people could get tangled in the shark nets. These have been damaged by the storm and have been washed closer to the shore. A swimmer died last year, tangled into a shark net. Sharks are not a problem at the moment, the troubled sea keeps them away.
Surfers Paradise Lifeguard speaks about the washed in shark nets
Sun seekers should consider to remain on the beach for the next days and avoid going into the water. The combination of dirt and sand have produced smelly foam which is still present on the beach.
Tourists didn’t believe their eyes when they visited Mainbeach, Broadbeach or Surfers Paradise Friday morning. A sticky yellow foam covered the parts of the beaches which were not washed into the sea.
“We are lucky here. It’s worse up north. The beaches will mostly heal themselves. The sand that got swept away will be replaced by sand from other beaches. It is a natural process that the beaches exchange sand after a storm”, says the lifeguard of Mainbeach on the Gold Coast.
Strong winds blew sand deep in the cities and towns. For visitors the beaches look chaotic and the parts of the city close to the ocean look like beaches now.
The City Council is not able to carry away all the sand. External companies will help. One of the construction workers says, that he has a contract for several weeks. At least, the storm creates work.
This picture slide show shows the Gold Coast beaches on Friday Morning:
