Luxury beachside homes have been evacuated after two properties partially collapsed into the sea following a battering from high waves.
As many as 66 homes at Wamberal, on the New South Wales central coast, are considered to be ‘at risk’ from the wild weather.
An east coast low has been battering the state’s coast since Tuesday with waves as high as 11.5 metres recorded at Sydney beaches.
The Bureau of Meteorology has recorded waves as high as five metres along the central coast throughout the week while State Emergency Services say the erosion is the worst it has been in 30 years.
Luxury beachside homes have been evacuated after two properties partially collapsed into the sea following a battering from high waves
As many as 66 homes at Wamberal, on the New South Wales central coast, are considered to be ‘at risk’ from the wild weather
A NSW Police spokeswoman said that residents of up to 30 houses on Ocean View Drive had been advised to evacuate as a precaution after consultation with structural engineers.
Chris Rogers, who lives on Ocean View Drive, said on Friday at least 40 homes have had their frontage completely destroyed.
Locals woke up to further destruction on Saturday morning, with two homes partially collapsing overnight.
Photos have captured the trail of destruction and show walls of houses swept into the sea while concrete bollards stand exposed in the eroded shoreline.
In other photographs, balconies were seen hanging from homes and structural supports were left completely exposed because of the heavy rainfall this week.
Wamberal Protection Society vice-president Margaret Bryce says the damage is worse than in 2016 when another severe weather event caused significant erosion along the coastline.
‘It’s worse in that we’ve got two houses falling into the sea,’ Ms Bryce said.
‘We’ve got several houses at threat.
‘Police had come last night and told people not to sleep there and people are being displaced.’
She said it had been a disaster waiting to happen, blaming Central Coast Council’s ‘inaction’ on building a planned seawall to protect homes and the entire suburb.
‘The anxiety and the stress of everybody here is palpable and it should be for the rest of Wamberal too,’ Ms Bryce said.
In other photographs, balconies were seen hanging from homes and structural supports were left completely exposed because of the heavy rainfall this week
Photos have captured the trail of destruction and show walls of houses swept into the sea while concrete bollards stand exposed in the eroded shoreline
‘If this dune breaches, that lagoon behind us, all those lower-lying houses which have no meaningful foundations, will be breached too.
‘As well as the $200 million worth of … infrastructure, road, NBN network, utilities – all wasted.’
Outraged resident Veronica Allison told Sunrise the extent of the damage could have been avoided.
‘This is quite a tragedy and it should never, never have happened.’
Locals claim council has prevented them from bringing in a seawall to protect their properties since 2016.
Though Central Coast Council’s Scott Cox said residents had every right to protect their homes.
‘If residents with sound advice, engineering advice, need to do works to save their own home, council won’t be taking any action against them,’ he said.
Local photographer Bryce Weick told Daily Mail Australia the homes had been hammered with bad weather in recent days and he couldn’t believe the damage.
Extreme weather conditions will continue along the coast of New South Wales as the Bureau of Meteorology has issued a hazardous surf warning all the way from Byron Bay to Eden
‘Some of these places are just teetering on the edge,’ he said.
‘I think there is a higher tide coming in later on today so I think these people could be in for a little bit of trouble.’
Extreme weather conditions will continue along the coast of New South Wales as the Bureau of Meteorology has issued a hazardous surf warning all the way from Byron Bay to Eden.
‘A low over the northern Tasman Sea continues to bring a large swell to the New South Wales coast,’ BoM warns.
‘Surf and swell conditions are expected to be hazardous for coastal activities such as rock fishing, boating, and swimming in the following areas.’