Fire ants Gold Coast: Helensvale forced to move home games as more nests found

The fire ant crisis is worsening as concerns grow for Gold Coast sport following the discovery of three more nests on a single field. FIND OUT MORE

For the second week in a row, Hession Oval will be unavailable to play on as fire ants continue to run rampant across the turf.

Fire ants were discovered on last Tuesday January 9, causing Cricket Gold Coast to abandon the premier first grade match between Helensvale and Mudgeeraba.

One week on, upon inspecting the oval again, a further three more nests have been found.

Helensvale president David O’Donnell said hopefully we can get this sorted pretty quickly.

“One of our sponsors of the club is a pest control guy and he said to us when we saw them that they were fire ants,” O’Donnell said.

“Then when we went to check a week later like the council said, we discovered more of them.

“Second grade are meant to play here this weekend but now they have been moved.

“We are lucky that this time it is before the first ball, so we can actually get a full game in.”

Helensvale were meant to host Burleigh at Hession Oval but have now been moved to play at Les Ferguson Oval in Currumbin.

More to come.

Previously

‘A bit alarming’: Devastating discovery on Gold Coast field

Fears about the march of fire ants across the Gold Coast are escalating, with the latest nest forcing the cancellation of a key local cricket fixture.

A new nest of the pests was found at Helensvale’s Hession Oval on Tuesday, forcing the abandonment of a planned first-grade two-day game between the home side and Mudgeeraba.

The move has set off alarm bells for clubs which fear it is just the start of widespread disruption if more nests are found.

The nest was found at Helensvale’s Hession Oval.

Now political leaders fear the Gold Coast will face economic devastation if the spread of the deadly “super pests” are left unchecked.

They fear disruption of NRL or AFL fixtures or Olympic events in 2032 would leave city embarrassed on the world stage.

Cricket Gold Coast senior co-ordinator Barry van Peppen said there is some serious concern about the growing insect.

“It is a bit alarming, if it was before the first day of the match though we could have moved the game,” he said.

Fire ants are considered “super pests”.

“But being the middle of the game, we made the decision that the best result for both clubs was to call it a draw.

“We knew there was a problem with fire ants during the winter at some grounds where the grounds were closed for two weeks or more.

“So there is some serious concern over the fact that the oval at Helensvale still won’t be ready for next Saturday.”

Barry Van Peppen is concerned about the impact on sporting fixtures.

The presence of the pests in sporting fields and ecologically sensitive locations including The Spit has the city on high alert, with the potential to close down beaches and various public facilities if the spread gets out of control.

Robina councillor Hermann Vorster, who chairs the council’s lifestyle committee warned the Gold Coast’s sporting economy was at risk if further fixtures at professional levels were forced to be cancelled.

“It’s not just the multi-hundred-million-dollar clean up, but the enormous social costs we will contend with,” he said.

“The shutdown of this weekend fixture will devastate local families — and is a chilling sign of things to come.”

Hermann Vorster

“If (something isn’t done) we can expect to see more community clubs pushed to breaking point with lost points and lost fundraising opportunities.”

“I’m worried what is could mean for Olympic preparations too. How embarrassing to see training fixtures camps cancelled because a preventable biosecurity got out of control.”

A $268m federal fill-up into the fight against fire ants, four years of federal funding, was committed in October and will be used to “ring-fence” southeast Queensland to contain and try to eradicate the dangerous creatures.

Agricultural Minister Murray Watt. Picture Glenn Campbell

Federal Treasurer Jim Chalmers at the time warned the economic future of the region was at stake, with the annual cost of the fire ants spread causing “economic, health and social impacts in excess of $1.25bn annually, forever”.

However the funds fell far short of the $600m needed to completely rid the region of fire ants, according to a ­Queensland Audit Office ­report.

Federal Agriculture Minister and Gold Coast-based Senator Murray Watt said the National Red Imported Fire Ant program, led by the state government, was “very experienced in dealing with detections like this one” and said it was showing signs of success.

“The program continues to contain the spread of fire ants on the Gold Coast, with similar outbreaks in other countries spreading much further and quicker,” he said.