Latest news with #Ex-CycloneAlfred
Yahoo
15-03-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Sinister find above garage door prompts warning over 'active' threat to Aussie homes
Australian property owners are being warned to remain vigilant about the invasive and destructive threat of termite infestations after a scary detail was spotted above a garage door. The image, taken in Albany Creek in Brisbane, highlights how infestations can hide in plain sight in our homes. "This is subterranean termite workings, known as stalactite, from the garage roof," pest controller Jhy Carroll told Yahoo News of the shocking discovery. "When we inspected this house, we also found active termites through the garage walls and skirting boards." While every job is different, he said the cost to eliminate the colony and install a preventative system to "protect the building in the future" was between $3,000 and $5,000. The warning comes after Yahoo News reported that termites thrive in wetter and more humid conditions, meaning the critters are 'on the move' searching for new places to forage and find food. According to the Australian Museum, termite colonies are formed during warm, humid weather, typically in spring and autumn. While there are over 200 species of termites in Australia, only a few are of concern to humans. "The warmer months of the year are always the most active time for termites, however after all the recent floods these properties that get water ingress are at higher risk of termite activity," Carroll said, referring to the tropical low weather system known as Ex-Cyclone Alfred which hit the east coast last week. If found inside a home, termites can cause serious damage by eating away at wooden structures. The University of Technology Sydney previously discovered that termites cause $ 1.5 billion in damage to homes every year. Yahoo News recently spoke with a couple who were left more than $100,00 out of pocket after they purchased a multi-million dollar property on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland in June last year only to later find a pest report didn't uncover extensive termite damage at the property. 🐜 Homeowners spend five years and 'all their money' repairing horrifying find in walls 🏡 Aussies warned about invasive creatures 'on the move' that can destroy your home 😳 Concerning find behind wall of Aussie home highlights 'serious' problem According to Carroll, there are two main ways to prevent termites, one is with a chemical barrier and the other is an in-ground baiting system. "Chemical barrier treatment consists of digging a trench around the external perimeter of the home and chemically treating the soil area," he said. While in-ground systems are also installed around the external perimeter of the house, they include a bait that the termites feed on to "eliminate the colony". Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@ You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube.
Yahoo
08-03-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Aussies warned against 'prohibited' act causing major beach damage
Beachgoers have been accused of a damaging act that is putting the local ecosystem at risk as many attempt to catch a glimpse of the wild conditions brought by Ex-Cyclone Alfred. People are now being urged to stay far away from the sand dunes, which have taken a recent battering along the Aussie coastline. Photos show despite widespread beaches closures, visitors have been sighted walking atop the delicate dune systems, and volunteers have said while climbing and jumping off the eroded dunes may seem "harmless fun", it has the potential to be dangerous and cause even greater dune collapse. They are incredibly important in holding sand in place, creating a natural flood barrier, a buffer for wind erosion and are a nesting ground for native birds and endangered turtles. "Please help protect our eroded dunes and the turtle nests in them," Coolum and North Shore Coast Care shared online. "Some nests are only a metre or so from the edge and we are monitoring them closely. "Vegetation is so important to hold the sand in place and the turtle eggs safe until they hatch." It comes as Sunshine Coast's Beach Matters president Rachael Bermingham told Yahoo News a cluster of endangered loggerhead turtle nests were recently rescued at the edge of an escarpment created by massive swells at Peregian Beach, near Noosa. READ MORE: 🌀 Cyclone Alfred live updates "One of our locals called it in, and turtle volunteers swung into action," she told Yahoo. "It really does highlight the immense work volunteers do to get endangered loggerhead turtle numbers up. "Please remember dunes are protected and prohibited. Stay off them, they are very fragile and take a long time to recover." Across large stretches of the east coast either side of the Queensland-NSW border, photos show drop offs as steep as six metres where the damaging waves have ripped the sand away from the beach and washed it away. It's not the first time irresponsible visitors have been blasted in the area for bad behaviour on the dunes, with Yahoo reporting in January e-bike tracks were spotted on Peregian Beach. 4WDs have also been called out for the "tremendous damage" their reckless behaviour is inflicting on wildlife. Bermingham echoed comments made by University of the Sunshine Coast's Dr Javier Leon who earlier told Yahoo News the dunes could take "years" to recover. "Our greatest concern is what is to come in terms of the swell, waves, wind," she told Yahoo. "The beaches have copped an absolute flogging all along the coastline. It will take a few years for these beaches to come back to their pre-cyclone state". Bermingham believes "a lot of people don't know" that dunes and their vegetation are protected. "People are inadvertently sitting on protected dunes which is making them more fragile and compromising them more," she said. "Because the dunes have eroded so badly, we're seeing lots of turtle nests at high risk and relocate them on the fly," Bermingham said. "[Volunteers] have done an outstanding job in the most ridiculous of conditions to jump into gear and save the eggs and relocate them to areas where they are not so at risk." Safer conditions look like sheltered areas with plenty of vegetation on higher ground and out of the way of large ocean swells. Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@ You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube.
