Gold Coast moves into ‘recovery phase’ after ex-tropical cyclone Alfred devastated city

Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate chopper view of the damage to the Australian tourism capital from the air has him warning there is “a lot of work ahead” to get back on its feet. SEE THE VIDEO

Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate has surveyed citywide damage from the air, warning it is “a lot of work ahead” to get back on its feet after the blasting from Cyclone Alfred.

Mr Tate flew over much of the Gold Coast on Monday afternoon, including the heavily eroded beaches and Hinze Dam, collecting evidence for council’s disaster funding submission.

The flight also inspected the A-line wall on the city’s beaches which held despite the heavy surf pounding it after the now-ex Tropical Cyclone Alfred starting impacting the coastline late Friday.

Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate surveying damage to the city in the aftermath of ex-tropical cyclone Alfred. Picture: Supplied

Mr Tate, who on Monday promised to get the city’s famed beaches back in shape by the upcoming Easter holidays, said: “Seeing the scale of the damage from the air reinforces the huge job we have ahead of us.

“The aerial inspection reaffirmed Hinze Dam is operating according to its design and gave me a first-hand look at some of the key damage and water inundation across parks, sports fields and community venues.

“I also got to view the A-line along our open beaches to see where potential improvements can be made to that infrastructure.”

Hinze Dam continued to function through the storm. Picture: Supplied

Mr Tate said it was critical for the city to get basic services restored as the tourism capital moved into the “recovery phase”.

“Gold Coasters have rallied to recover from other natural disasters and we will do it again.

“The community spirit is strong and we are now moving into the recovery phase,” he said.

The flight allowed the beaches to be surveyed. Picture: Supplied

“That said, there are still thousands of homes without power so we must get those services sorted.

“Energex has been incredible and we continue to partner with them to restore power to the last 40,000 properties.

“I strongly urge residents to log on to our City Dashboard which lists every support service available.

“It’s boots-on-the-ground as we rebuild lost infrastructure the length and breadth of the city.”

Some homes will continue without power for up to eight days in some cases, whilst disaster payments are becoming available for residents, workers and sole traders impacted by the weather emergency.

Mr Tate later said at a joint media conference with Premier David Crisafulli it was incredible to see the community spirit of the Gold Coast with a hovercraft operator helping stranded northern Gold Coasters as reported in the Bulletin.

Areas such as Jacobs Well were still cut off he said, but added: “The city of the Gold Coast and Queensland will be ready to welcome back Australian tourists for the April holidays so we don’t face economic disaster as a result of Alfred.

“It will be a proud moment to put the jigsaw back as good as ever.”