A weekend of wild weather in Australia disrupted everything from the internet to shipping and banking, while pummeling coastal towns and exposing insurance companies to hefty payouts.
Stocks in Australia biggest insurers, including QBE Insurance, Insurance Australia Group and Suncorp, were lower on the Australian Securities Exchange, with the wider market trading in positive territory, Yahoo reported.
A clean-up was underway after a low pressure system that brought flooding and strong winds combined with high tidal surges along much of the Australian east coast started to ease.
Exclusive homes located on Sydney’s Collaroy Beach are in danger of collapsing after high tides and huge waves caused severe erosion for a second night.
Losses at the Collaroy Beach alone has narrowed by up to $50m. Four people died and another three are still missing, BBC report said.
Conditions eased in the state of Tasmania on Tuesday and the worst of the weather has passed.
The multi-million dollar waterfront properties on Collaroy Beach lost backyards, decks and a swimming pool after 13 meter-high waves and a spring tide—known as a king tide in Australia—pummeled the beach.
A second spring tide hit the beach on Monday night, eroding the sand by another 5 meters and causing additional damage to the houses. A further spring tide is expected on Tuesday night.
Engineers will assess damage to the houses before property owners are allowed to return.
Flood warnings remain in place for three rivers in Tasmania, with residents of Invermay and Longford told to evacuate.
