EMERGENCY WORK BEING UNDERTAKEN AT BILGOLA AND NARRABEEN.




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Background: Sydney's northern beaches were battered by storms yesterday for the second time in a month, causing damage from Manly to Palm Beach.

Hundreds of residents, civil defence workers and council employees battled driving winds and rains in a effort to save beachfront homes form huge seas at billgola, a northern Sydney suburb. They passed thousands of sandbags from hand to hand in an effort to protect the shoreline from the winds and the high tides. Their action saved 12 housed which were being prepared for evacuation.

Heavy seas around Sydney in the past two weeks have eroded massive areas of beach and many homes and blocks of flats now front directly onto the sea. As the heavy seas continue, combined with seasonal high tides authorities fear that many homes are in danger of being washed away.

Bilgola beach looks like a disaster asea with virtually all of the $60,000 beachside homes damaged to some extent. The swimming pool from one house has been washed onto what remains of the beach, while the septle tank from another property has met a similar fate. Seven of the homes have been evacuated and five others are in danger.

At the seaside suburb of Narrabeen the $1 million block of homes 'Marquesas' survived the high tide damage restricted to the swimming pool and garage area. As at Bilgola bulldozers had been brought in to shore up the coastline with heavy boulders, whilst volunteers filled sandbags.

The weather bureau predict continued heavy seas and high tides with no let-up insight. The abnormal weather conditions are affecting most part of the New South Wales coast.