Sydney storm: Beachfront homes in danger of collapse, as wild weather batters the east coast
MANY of the luxury beachfront homes on the brink of collapse in Collaroy are unlikely to be insured for the damage, according to the insurance industry’s peak body.
NSW
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MANY of the luxury beachfront homes on the brink of collapse in Collaroy are unlikely to be insured for the damage, according to the insurance industry’s peak body.
Most housing insurance policies don’t typically cover “actions of the sea”, which includes coastal erosion, king tides or storm surges, said the Insurance Council of Australia’s Campbell Fuller in a statement.
“A small number of policies on the market will cover actions of the sea under certain conditions,” he said.
“Ninety-three per cent of all new home insurance policies purchased in Australia now include cover for flooding (under the standard definition), but neither actions of the sea nor the effects of gradual sea level rise are considered to be flooding for insurance purposes.”
It is believed multiple home owners in the stretch were in the process of selling their homes when the storm hit.
One family had only recently listed their property and were planning to go to auction on June 15.
Desperate owners fear one more hammering from the unrelenting surf will be the end of some of their homes, but they face a nervous wait with an “abnormally high tide” predicted tonight.
A major sandbagging operation is underway to save the homes ahead of an expected king tide tonight.
Resident Tony Cagorski has lived in his mult-million dollar home for 15 years and lost more than 15m of his property in the storm.
He told The Today Show he and his neighbours had been petitioning the council for a break wall to be built but there hadn’t been much action.
“We had 15m of sand and yard so we’ve lost all that and last night we lost another two metres,” he said.
“We haven’t heard from anybody, we just had a geo-technic guy here a couple of days ago and he had a look but (there was) not much feedback from them.”
“One way or another we’re going to rebuild this thing and if the council wants to (stop them from rebuilding), bring it on.”
Another resident, whose lounge room had already collapsed onto the beach in front of his home, told Channel 7’s Sunrise his home couldn’t withstand another hit and would almost certainly crumble if it did.
Among the Collaroy houses is one owned by Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs coach Des Hasler. The Collaroy property was flooded and sections were destroyed.
His wife Christine Hasler said yesterday they were counting their blessings. “We are very lucky,” she said.
Hasler later played down the situation. “We’re sweet,’’ he said.
The east coast low that has wreaked havoc since Saturday finally started to dissipate last night, but it left a trail of destruction in its wake.
Volunteers were battling in a desperate bid to save a multimillion-dollar unit block from serious erosion in the storm-ravaged suburb.
Rural Fire Service personnel and State Emergency Service volunteers began dumping hundreds of sandbags in front of the four-storey block on Pittwater Rd shortly after 8pm.
University of New South Wales coastal researcher Mitchell Harley says six homes are “cracking up” at Collaroy after the NSW coast was smashed for the third day in a row.
A video posted by the drone pilot online contains a sickening sound as the properties groan under the force of the waves crashing against them.
“It’s eroded a further five or so metres and there’s a very huge concern that these houses won’t survive the night,” Dr Mitchell told Fairfax. “They’re very much teetering on the edge.
‘There’s large cracks being heard as the buildings are starting to break away.’
Insurance companies have already received more than 11,150 claims from across NSW and Queensland, with estimated insured losses of $38 million. And the Insurance Council of Australia expected that figure to rise significantly.
Collaroy-Narrabeen Beach copped the full force of the storm surge, with waves demolishing the front of the Collaroy Beach Club building and other infrastructure.
Homes on the beach, already ranked as one of the worst three spots in Australia for erosion, were savaged.
Photos of Malcolm McGuinness’s Pittwater Rd property were beamed around the world yesterday after he lost half his house and an entire concrete swimming pool to the storm.
“This is one of the only stretches which doesn’t have a sea wall and it was the hardest hit,” he said
“I’m pretty upset by the whole thing but I have somewhere to stay. We are waiting for the engineers to decide when it is safe to go back.”
Two doors down, Mandy Greville and her husband Mark lost their home.
A distraught Mrs Greville said she watched as her backyard started falling into the ocean moments before she was evacuated at 8.30pm on Sunday.
“My deck slid off and three metres of grass came right after,” she said.
“There was this loud crack and it all just gave way right in front of me. I don’t know what to think, I’ve never seen weather like that before. But now that this has happened we need protection to stop the rest eroding away.”
Real estate valuers estimated yesterday more than $500,000 had been shaved off the market value of affected waterfront homes. “Properties severely damaged in floods tend to attract a stigma and buyers won’t pay the same prices while the damage is still fresh in their minds,” PMC Property analyst James Freudigmann said.
Houses on Pittwater Rd worth $2.2 million to $4.5 million before the storm swept away large chunks of the properties would be worth 10-15 per cent less, on average, if put on the market in the next six months.
Real Institute of NSW president John Cunningham said the value of the damaged homes would bounce back because of high demand for beachfront homes, but they may still be at risk.
“Some of these properties may not survive if another big storm hits,” Mr Cunningham said. “They’re built on sand.”
Describing the storm as “monstrous” and “ferocious”, Premier Mike Baird vowed to fast-track natural disaster assistance: “We are doing everything with local councils on the ground to assess the damage. We will then get (a natural disaster declaration) signed off.”
The Insurance Council of Australia yesterday declared an official “insurance catastrophe” after insurers received more than 11,000 storm-related claims in the space of 48 hours.
“So far most claims concern typical storm damage, such as roof and gutter damage, and damage due to fallen trees. There are also reports of cars being flooded,” acting CEO Karl Sullivan said.
People living and working in disaster-declared areas will be eligible for immediate relief packages, including interest-free loans for small businesses and grants for affected councils.
The Red Cross said yesterday it would deploy special emergency assistance teams to provide disaster support.
“It can be a tough time, with people feeling a host of different emotions as they come to terms with what they’re experiencing,” spokesman Andrew Coghlan said. “They’ll be feeling everything from shock to grief and loss, worry about loved ones and pets, and uncertainty about the future.”
Despite yesterday’s easing conditions, Bureau of Meteorology flood warnings remained in place for waterways across NSW.
Meanwhile, bridges along the Hawkesbury, including the Windsor and Yarramundi bridges, have been closed with the river peaking early on Tuesday morning.
The North Richmond bridge is still open, but being monitored and could be closed.
JUST IN: Flood waters in northwest Sydney are still rising, causing the closure of the Windsor Bridge. #9News pic.twitter.com/CtFEq4h6oz
— Nine News Sydney (@9NewsSyd) June 6, 2016
Opposition Leader Bill Shorten will suspend his election campaign to visit storm victims in coastal Sydney.
After a morning event in Adelaide, Mr Shorten will divert his campaign entourage to Sydney to survey the impact of wild storms and thank emergency workers.
The opposition leader will be joined by his deputy Tanya Plibersek at the Coogee Surf Life Saving Club on Tuesday.
COOGEE AND SURROUNDS
Structural engineers continue to assess the damage caused to Coogee Surf Club which was severely damaged by monster waves during the storm and king tides. Randwick City Council spokesman Josh Hay said engineers were confident the walls taken out by the surf were not structural and the iconic building could be saved.
Incredible pictures from inside the club showed the extent of the damage with walls knocked down and the surf raging outside.
Mr Hay said heavy earthmoving equipment was now on the beach moving sand back into place which had been shifted during the storm, enough moving to expose the foundations of the old Coogee Pier which was built in the late 1920s and stretched out almost 200m out to sea.
The pier had a theatre, ballroom and restaurant, together with an amusement arcade, but it had only a short life.
Damaged by the unforgiving Coogee surf, the pier was demolished in 1934.
WOLLONGONG
Large parts of the city were underwater when the storm hit over the weekend and Wollongong Harbour - home to dozens of fishing and luxury vessels - was pounded by massive waves.
The council
ROAD CLOSURES AND TRANSPORT
SYDNEY – HAWKESBURY REGION
Bridge St, Windsor – closed at Windsor Bridge
Springwood Rd, Yarramundi – closed at Yarramundi Bridge
Windsor Rd, McGraths Hill – closed near Pitt Town Rd
Wisemans Ferry Rd, Cattai – closed near Mitchell Park Rd
Sackville and Lower Portland Ferries – out of service due to high tides
Webbs Creek Ferry – back in service after some repairs; more may be required after 9am so a further service outage may be required.
SYDNEY – SOUTH
Newbridge Rd, Chipping Norton – closed westbound between Governor Macquarie Dr and Henry Lawson Dr; one eastbound lane is available
Douglas Park Dr, Douglas Park – closed at Nepean River
Menangle Rd, Menangle – closed at Menangle Bridge
Silverdale Rd, Wallacia – closed at Wallacia Bridge
Audley Rd, Royal National Park – closed at Audley Weir
Wilton Rd, Appin – closed between Technology Rd and Macarthur Dr
ILLAWARRA
Illawarra Hwy, Macquarie Pass – closed between Jamberoo Mountain Rd and Tongarra Rd
PUBLIC TRANSPORT
FERRIES
Cronulla-Bundeena Ferry is not operating due to storm damage at Cronulla wharf
Palm Beach Ferry services will use Palm Beach anchorage instead of Palm Beach wharf due to storm damage.
BUSES
Some bus services may be diverted and delayed due to state and council road closures
LIGHT RAIL
A reduced service is operating due to damage to some rolling stock caused by the recent storms.
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