With ex-Tropical Cyclone Oma downgraded to a sub-tropical low, the Sunshine Coast is now in clean-up and recovery mode, while still monitoring dangerous surf conditions.
While the severe weather warnings have been cancelled, Sunshine Coast Disaster Management Coordinator Cathy Buck encourages people to still exercise caution when going to the beach.
“We are still experiencing dangerous surf, and we advise people to stay tuned to advice from Surf Life Saving Queensland in regards to beach openings and safe areas to swim,” Ms Buck said.
Coastal Coordinator Michael Anderson said a number of beach accesses were closed at Moffat Beach and Mooloolaba due to sand profile losses, and 17 turtle nests had been relocated due to impacts from the cyclone.
“There have been a range of sand blow issues at a number of locations including Kings Beach, Kawana, Maroochydore, and Mooloolaba.
“There is minor coffee rock exposure at Alexandra Headland Surf Lifesaving Club and Maroochydore Beach.
“Two geobag groynes were damaged at Golden Beach, and council is now investigating rectification works.
“Most coastal lake systems are open or have proactive sand spillways in place. Stumers Creek is the only one that will require further investigation by council, due to lake level impacts upstream.
“Overall, our coast has been quite lucky with the impacts of Oma due to the large amount of sand that was on the beaches prior to the event.
“Given most of this sand has moved to the nearshore zone, it is hoped that some of the sand will naturally return to the beaches if relatively quiet weather conditions are experienced from now on.”
Cathy Buck said Sunshine Coast Council crews had been active on the beaches, roads, and other community areas throughout the cyclone event.
“Council crews monitored and closed roads on the high tides, where necessary, to ensure public safety,” Ms Buck said.
“Crews had been clearing storm drains to ensure water didn’t inundate private properties and removing tree debris from roads and parks which came down as a result of the strong winds.
“The Disaster Management team has been closely monitoring the system and keeping our community updated with current information about weather warnings and advice through our Disaster Hub.
“Council provided and coordinated a DIY sandbagging facility in Nambour to allow the community to get their own sandbags as needed for their homes.
“Our council crews will be working over the next week to fix any issues that arose from the event and getting our beaches and access points back to a great condition.
“They will also continue clearing the remainder of debris from our roads and public areas.”
For weather-related warnings and advice including road closures, please visit council’s Disaster Hub website.
