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Home / World

Bubble bath: Sea foam covers Australian beaches after wild storm

By Phoebe Loomes
news.com.au·
15 Dec, 2020 08:55 PM2 mins to read

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Kids played in the surf foam at the beach. Photo / news.com.au

Kids played in the surf foam at the beach. Photo / news.com.au

Thick blankets of sea foam have covered a popular Queensland beach drawing some curious locals and tourists into the water.

The unusual weather phenomenon has been spotted in recent days as the east coast has been battered by heavy rain, strong winds and wild surf.

This morning waves of foam were washed across Currumbin Beach in the Gold Coast, with families and children spotted playing in the thick substance.

Sea foam washes over a fence at Currumbin Beach. Photo / news.com.au
Sea foam washes over a fence at Currumbin Beach. Photo / news.com.au

The foam covered the beach all around the Currumbin Beach Vikings Surf Life Saving Club and blanketed a rockpool area near the club.

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"It's incredible — once every few years we get this," an amateur photographer told 9 News.

"I photograph a lot of the ocean so it's a pretty spectacular occurrence."

Keen photographers snapped the sea foam at Currumbin Beach. Photo / news.com.au
Keen photographers snapped the sea foam at Currumbin Beach. Photo / news.com.au

It was also seen at Tugun on the Gold Coast as strong waves surged into shore, and at First Bay in Coolum, completely covering the usually tidy beach.

It's believed the worst of the wild weather has now passed for Queensland however king tides and dangerous surf continue to present a risk.

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Today a minor to moderate flood warning continues for parts of north east NSW including along the Tweed River, according to the Bureau of Meteorology.

In parts of southeast Queensland, accumulated rainfall totals for the past four days are edging close to the 1 metre mark — including Upper Springbrook, which has copped 953mm, and Lower Springbrook, with 733mm.

A young boy plays in the foam at the beach. Photo / news.com.au
A young boy plays in the foam at the beach. Photo / news.com.au

"Major coastal erosion is ongoing is northeast NSW and southeast Queensland as spring tides combine with large waves in excess of eight metres and gale force winds eat away at sand from beaches," the Bureau of Meteorology warned on Monday.

The warning said current high tides have exceeded previous highs from 2020 by "up to 30cm in some locations".

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