Council warning at Robe cliffs after recent wild weather battered the area
An SA beachside attraction has been labelled “extremely dangerous” by the local council, after it was recently battered by wild weather these school holidays.
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A South-East council has blocked off the area surrounding a major tourist attraction these school holidays, amid fears of an “extremely dangerous” cliff collapse.
The District Council of Robe has erected bunting and signage at the cliffs by the lighthouse, after the area was battered by severe weather last week.
Chief executive Nat Traeger said the area had become “extremely dangerous”, warning a potentially deadly collapse was the council’s “biggest fear”.
She said the council was “not even game enough” to send out staff to manage the erosion, fearing the area was too unstable.
While the lighthouse remained open, orange bunting and danger signs were put up around parts of the cliff tops.
Ms Traeger said things “may not appear dangerous or threatening” on the surface, but “significant undercutting” could have put the area at risk.
Cliff undercutting is when parts of the surface remain visible, but underneath, the face becomes eroded, posing a risk of instability and collapse.
“We’ve put signing and everything up, but people are just ignoring that,” Ms Traeger said.
“We’re not even game enough to put too many star droppers with signs up, in case something gives way.”
The council’s “kneejerk” reaction to the damage has been to try and get someone to undertake a LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) test to compare the cliff’s stability to what it was when the last test was done in 2022.
The only concern, Ms Traeger said, was that it cost the council $45,000, just to have he LiDAR test done.
On top of the damage at the lighthouse, Ms Traeger said the community was still reeling from broken roads and flooded homes after wild weather lashed the town last month.
“We’re very vulnerable at the minute,” she said.
“We’ve had the marina flood; it topped over and caused flooding into some nearby homes.
“We’ve also had to facilitate a privately-funded emergency protection against a house at Hooper’s Beach, and close a road on Fox Beach.
“And then of course the jetty, the carpark at the jetty is significantly damaged, but we’ve essentially got two jetties, one out at sea and one on the land, it split in two.”
Ms Traeger said it was disappointing that the town, recognised for its tourism, was having to close its attractions.
She said while the council was doing what it could to keep the community safe, visitors still needed to take care.
“You can’t fence off the whole coastline”.
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Originally published as Council warning at Robe cliffs after recent wild weather battered the area
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