Latest news with #NatTraeger
ABC News
14-07-2025
- Climate
- ABC News
Cliff collapses near Robe lighthouse as SA coastal erosion worsens
A coastal South Australian council says it has its hands full with the impacts of erosion, after at least 10 metres of cliff near Robe's working lighthouse collapsed at the weekend. Large amounts of rock and vegetation along a cliff to the west of the town in the state's south-east collapsed late on Saturday. The District Council of Robe has since closed a nearby car park and barricaded the area, which is also near a scenic coastal walk. The collapse comes less than a month after Robe's jetty was destroyed during severe storms, and with the town's iconic obelisk also at risk of falling into the sea. Council chief executive Nat Traeger said the collapse also exposed significant undercutting of the cliff above. Ms Traeger said the incident highlighted the rapidly increasing risk erosion presented to the town's infrastructure. "Our coastal adaptation strategy did indicate the area around the lighthouse was vulnerable, but we probably weren't expecting that to go so quickly," she said. "We've been dealing with the coastal erosion around Fox and Hooper [beaches], and that's been taking up our attention." The council plans to use a drone to examine the collapse further. The collapse of the limestone cliffs along Robe's coast is not uncommon, with a large hole opening up further along the coastal walk, between the lighthouse and the obelisk, in 2022. Ms Traeger said the Commonwealth-managed lighthouse was not in immediate risk, but it heightened concerns about the 170-year-old obelisk. "[The obelisk working group] was talking about having a worldwide lottery as to the date it may fall," she said. "The lottery may switch to which one goes first, the lighthouse or the obelisk, because they're both now significantly vulnerable. "We've certainly got our hands full at the moment." Robe Obelisk Working Party member Doug Fotheringham looked at survey data of the Robe coastline from 1896 and compared that to data from 2009, finding some sections had eroded as much as 26 metres during that time. He said cliff collapses along that part of the coast were expected, particularly after storms. "At the time in 2009, we recommended that they basically don't put any assets within 30m of the cliff line," Mr Fotheringham said. "You get debris building up at the base of the cliff after a cliff fall, and that actually protects the cliff from further erosion. He said the lighthouse had a "bit more of a buffer" than the obelisk, but may still need to be relocated. "I wouldn't be surprised to see the obelisk go in my lifetime, but the Robe lighthouse might go in our children's lifetime, and I'm in my 70s," he said.
ABC News
25-06-2025
- Climate
- ABC News
King tides, wild winds destroy jetties, cause flooding on SA coast
King tides, rain and strong winds have battered South Australia's coast, destroying three historic jetties and flooding properties with seawater. Wind gusts of 91 kilometres per hour were recorded at Cape Jaffa yesterday and gust of 78kph were recorded at Robe. At Kingston South East on the Limestone Coast the tide and wind completely split the 161-year-old jetty in two. "We do understand part of it has certainly collapsed and it's detached from one end to the other," Kingston District Council chief executive Ian Hart said. "It's probably not salvageable for a repair. The tide, waves and wind also forced water up the Maria Creek and led to flooding in low-lying areas. Roads were closed and power was cut to the Rosetown area for safety reasons. Thirty-six homes are still without electricity. Tony Bryant's home is near the creek and said the flooding turned his home into "an island". "We live over the back of Maria Creek, which has burst its bank with the king tide and the wind surge and flooded all of Rosetown again," he said. Mr Hart said the flooding was significant. "People who lived in the area a lot longer than I have say they've never seen anything like it for 50 years or more," he said. The busy tourist town of Robe's jetty – already closed due to damage from a storm a month ago – was also split in two and one home was inundated as the Lake Butler Marina flooded. Robe District Council chief executive Nat Traeger said the jetty was estimated to be worth $250,000. "There's some long-time locals there that have said they've not seen the coast or the sea as violent as it has been," she said. Part of the esplanade road at Fox Beach was washed away when waves crashed through and over sand dunes. "We've done some emergency work late last night … but we are now in a situation where we have road and foreshore side by side," Ms Traeger said. "There is no stop-gap with a sand dune there at all, so that is going to be a major problem for us and that road will be closed indefinitely." To the north, Normanville's 157-year-old jetty was also destroyed. Kiosk owner Rhett Day said the wind and waves slowly tore the jetty apart over the course of about five hours. "Now, there's just a couple of pylons sitting out on their own with a couple of twisted and buckled hand rails," he said.
