An island park and decades-old picnic hut have fallen victim to the sea.
The Lions Park day-use area has been ravaged by the elements during the past couple of months, since a second tidal breakthrough at Bribie Island.
The park was closed in late March for safety reasons.
Now, new footage from drone operator Damien Lange has revealed the park and facilities have been destroyed.
Department of Environment workers recently cleared what they could of the mess.
“Due to the damage sustained by recent coastal erosion and wave impact, the shelter, picnic table and toilet block have been removed for public safety,” a spokesperson said.
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“Given limited access and safety considerations, only materials that could be safely disassembled by hand were removed.
“We thank the community for their understanding as we continue to monitor the site and consider long-term solutions.”
The site is essentially on the edge of the new breakthrough, which was estimated to be about 80m wide when a drone survey was conducted in late April.
Mr Lange believed the park was about to be completely swallowed by the ocean.
“The hut is now dismantled and that whole part of the island is about to wash away,” he said.
The park was established in 1965, before Sunshine Coast Council and Caloundra Lions Club members built the facilities there.
Club secretary Don McLachlan said members were “saddened” by the destruction of it.
“Unfortunately, there was nothing we could do about it,” he said.
He said the park and the beach were separated by about 30m before “but now the water is coursing through where the shed was”, he said.
The grass in the park has been overcome by sand, water and vegetation, while the facilities are fractured “beyond repair”.
“It’s very sad because it was a project the Lions club had undertaken over many years,” Mr McLachlan said.
“We had working bees and we had quite an attractive area there.”
The park and facilities were the only built elements for miles around, so they were relatively well known.
“A lot of people would take their boats or kayaks over there (from Golden Beach and Pelican Waters) and have a picnic and go for a swim,” he said. “It was very well used.”
The first breakthrough at Bribie Island occurred in early 2022 and is now more than 1km wide. A state government review is underway.
