Monster surf batters Bondi Icebergs pool and leaves trail of carnage across Sydney beaches

Locals in Sydney’s east woke on Wednesday to discover some of the city’s most famous beaches and coastal walkways battered and damaged by huge overnight swells.

Bondi, Bronte, Clovelly and Cronulla beaches were among the areas smashed by 5.5 metre swells.

Bondi’s world-famous Icebergs pool was hit hard by the wild surf. Some glass fences above the pool were broken and railings mangled. The wreckage of a large water tank washed up on the beach nearby.

Sam Bebb, the operations manager at Wylie’s baths in Coogee, a few suburbs south of Bondi, said they got “lucky” compared with Icebergs due to their amenities being more elevated.

“The worst … is some broken seating on the pool deck and damage that we haven’t quite been able to assess to the fence line surrounding the premises,” Bebb said.

Waverley council workers remove a large water tank from Icebergs pool that washed up on Bondi beach. Photograph: Dean Lewins/AAP

Wylie’s has been closed for swimming since Sunday. It was also closed on Wednesday, as were many eastern beaches.

A Waverley council spokesperson said infrastructure at three beaches was damaged overnight and they would remain closed on Wednesday as staff cleaned up.

A spokesperson for Randwick city council said beaches in their area would also remain closed on Wednesday as workers assessed damage at Coogee beach and along the coastal walk.

Waves smashed through the doors of Coogee Surf Club, tore through handrails at South Coogee and deposited large amounts of sand over the steps and rainbow walkway.

Waves hit Icebergs pool as large swells sweep into Sydney’s Bondi beach on Wednesday. Photograph: Mark Baker/AP

“These conditions are risky even for experienced surfers. After days of flooding in Queensland, there’s an additional risk of large debris in the water,” veteran Randwick city council lifeguard and well-known surfer, Paul Moffatt, said.

Moffatt urged the community to stay out of the water on Wednesday evening, when more large swells were expected to hit.

A section of the Cronulla esplanade has been cordoned off, with parts of the concrete walkway cratering from 4-metre waves as civil crews inspected the damage wrought overnight.

Brick walls also buckled under the pressure of powerful waves at Bronte.

Bayside council in Sydney’s south shared photos of extensive damage on Wednesday of broken footpaths, fallen debris and crushed bike lanes at Dolls Point as workers furiously tried to make sure the traffic flow was safe. Approximately 20 properties in the suburb were flooded.

Several beaches in the city’s north that are popular with tourists, such as Dee Why, were also affected and remain closed.

Some adventurous swimmers still braved the conditions on Wednesday morning, dipping into an ocean pool overlooking Cronulla beach.

A surfer rides a wave off Fairy Bower headland at Sydney’s Manly beach on Wednesday. Photograph: Cameron Spencer/Getty Images

The Bureau of Meteorology said the immediate threat of coastal hazards had passed and damaging surf conditions had eased, but a hazardous surf warning remained for the entire New South Wales coast.

The bureau warned against swimming, rock fishing and boating in affected areas.

NSW police advised people to stay out of the water and avoid walking near surf-exposed areas.

NSW State Emergency Services (SES) warned there was a risk of high tides on Wednesday night and asked people to avoid areas exposed to coastal erosion.

The SES received 17 reports of properties with coastal erosion on the NSW Central Coast.

The forecast on Wednesday was for heavy swells to continue for most of this week along the NSW and southern Queensland coasts.

Waves up to 6.3 metres were recorded at the Eden wave buoy on Tuesday morning and 5.1 metres at Batemans Bay in the afternoon. A 5.9 metre wave was registered at the Port Kembla buoy early on Wednesday morning.