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Residents and businesses around Bronte Beach brace for Christmas Day trash wave

An eatery across from one of Sydney’s most iconic beaches is considering cutting back its operations on Christmas Day following apocalyptic scenes 12 months ago which left the tourism hotspot like a garbage dump.

New footage emerges of massive Bronte Beach party after local outrage

An eatery across from one of Sydney’s most iconic beaches is considering cutting back its operations on Christmas Day following apocalyptic scenes 12 months ago which left the tourism hotspot akin to a garbage dump.

Thais Justin, a supervisor at cafe Bronte Belo, told The Daily Telegraph the chaotic mess recent years has caused concern for the brunch spot heading towards Christmas.

“A lot of people were entering the restaurant and trying to use our rest room, because we don’t have a lot of rest rooms at the beach,” Ms Justin said.

“They’d poop of the floor, they were not polite — actually very unpolite. And everyone was drinking in the middle of the street, there was a lot of trash on the beach.

“This Christmas we were thinking about only doing takeaway because we want to avoid what happened.”

Thais Justin, supervisor of Bronte Belo, fears what will happen at Bronte Beach this Christmas and how it will affect her cafe.
Thais Justin, supervisor of Bronte Belo, fears what will happen at Bronte Beach this Christmas and how it will affect her cafe.

The remarks come after partygoers left masses of rubbish across Bronte Beach over the previous two Christmases — leaving former Waverley Council mayor Paula Masselos demanding compensation from both the state and federal government.

Despite questions posed by this publication, it is unknown whether council received any compensation. However, a council spokesman said they have taken “a number of proactive measures” over the summer period.

“This includes additional deployment of NSW Police, enhanced public cleaning services, traffic management initiatives, crowd control measures and additional public toilets,” he said.

After almost 10,000 people descended onto the beach for some festive cheers and left disaster in their wake, council staff and residents spent Boxing Day cleaning up the mess.

The great mass of rubbish left by Christmas partygoers at Bronte Beach in 2023. Picture: Willow Berry
The great mass of rubbish left by Christmas partygoers at Bronte Beach in 2023. Picture: Willow Berry
A serene looking Bronte Beach on Tuesday. Picture: Tileah Dobson
A serene looking Bronte Beach on Tuesday. Picture: Tileah Dobson

A NSW Police spokeswoman said there would be high-visibility patrols across the city’s eastern suburbs over the holiday period.

“Police are aware of a party planned at Bronte Beach on Christmas Day and have been working with organisers,” she said.

“There will be officers tasked to patrol the area to ensure the safety of visitors and manage crowd numbers.

“Police work closely with other stakeholders including council staff and surf lifesavers over the summer period.”

Hassan Zaman who works at the local fish, chips and burger shop at Bronte Beach told this masthead he’d never seen “so many people” at the beach before.

Pictured is the masses of garbage left by thousands of revellers who descended on Bronte Beach for Christmas Day celebrations last year. Picture: NewsWire
Pictured is the masses of garbage left by thousands of revellers who descended on Bronte Beach for Christmas Day celebrations last year. Picture: NewsWire

“And then seeing all of the rubbish left behind, it was very messy,” Mr Zaman said.

“Because this area is normally very clean, very beautiful. We like this area to be clean and keep it clean.”

Bronte resident Anna said she understood why people chose the beach for Christmas, but they should be “mindful” and clean up after themselves.

“People, foreigners, backpackers and visitors to the area need to be mindful of what they leave behind,” she said.

Original URL: https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/newslocal/wentworth-courier/residents-and-businesses-around-bronte-beach-brace-for-christmas-day-trash-wave/news-story/5def3f20fe253f6bc1dc58ec725b04f7