Gold Coast holiday nightmare continues as broken crane unable to be taken down
Families hoping to spend their holidays next to the beach on the Gold Coast this Christmas have been left stranded after storms hampered efforts to dismantle a dangerously damaged crane.
An intense Christmas Day storm devastated the Gold Coast and a “micro explosion” split a 30-tonne crane in half, leaving it dangling over holidaymakers at Broadwater Tourist Park.
This meant the park’s 39 campsites were evacuated, with most visitors leaving all their belongings behind.
Strong winds pushing into the area prevented the building from being dismantled, meaning the crane remained suspended over the park, posing the danger of falling at any moment.
“This looked like something worse than anything we saw during Ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred. But this time our park was full of families trying to enjoy their Christmas Day,” the park said in a statement.
Two cranes would need to be brought in to dismantle the broken infrastructure, but they cannot do this in strong winds.
Engineers and police are working day and night to initiate rescue efforts.
Luckily, the park did not record any injuries from the storm cell that hit the area, but plenty of damage did occur.
“With over 230 sites occupied, it appears that most guests have sustained some type of damage to their tent canopies,” the park said.
“We are thankful to report there are no serious injuries, some are worse for wear, we are trying to do and hold on as best they can in the midst of this.”
