Fourth major cliff collapse since October

A SECOND large section of Jarosite Cliffs, between Pt Addis and Southside beaches, collapsed last week.

Parks Victoria closed a 450-metre-long, 10-metre-wide section of the beach beneath the cliffs after a man in his 20s died at the location on New Year’s Eve when a nearby area of the bluff gave way.

It’s since expanded that exclusion zone to 35 metres from the bottom of the cliff.

“Nobody is allowed into this area and we’ve updated signage to reflect that change. We’re also asking people not to stop within 35-50m of the cliff,” said Parks Victoria district manager Dale Antonysen.

“Due to the expanded exclusion zone it’s not possible to walk past Jarosite Headland unless it’s low tide, so please plan any walks with that in mind. The restriction is in place to keep people safe – please follow the advice and don’t go into the closed area.”

It’s the fourth major disintegration of high escarpments between Southside beach and Demons Bluff near Anglesea since October last year.

The beach beneath Demons Bluff remains closed due to the ongoing risk of further falls, as does access to the cliff tops via the Great Ocean Walk, a 400-metre section of which was was rerouted in 2016 by the former Great Ocean Road Coast and Parks Authority (GORCAPA) after an engineer showed there were cracks in the side of the cliff that could be a potential safety hazard.

There have been no reports of injury from the latest collapse, but there are warnings that more are likely and this poses a major risk to increasing visitors along the iconic coastline.

Recent drone footage from along the clifftops reveal numerous large fractures and several other cliff faces closer to Pt Roadknight have clearly viewable fissures from the beach.

“Moving into the future some of those spots may erode quicker,” predicted Professor David Kennedy, a coastal geomorphologist with The University of Melbourne, singling out Jarosite to Demon’s Bluff as most at risk.

“Luckily it’s been closed off.”

Severe storms and above average rainfall is one contributing factor to the numerous recent collapses, “it’s been wetter, wetness from top is a mechanism that causes them to let go,” he said.

The closures will remain until further notice, according to Parks Victoria and GORCAPA.