Storm smashes Margaret River visitor attraction

The massive storm that hit the Western Australian coast earlier this week has badly damaged the popular Canal Rocks walk bridge near Yallingup.

Western Australian Department of Conservation and Land Management Parks and Visitor Services Coordinator Ben Tannock said it was not clear if the bridge sustained any structural damage, advising “once the conditions settle, we will get a structural engineer out there.”

Tannock told the ABC “it's obviously in a high-energy part of the coastline so, when we get these big storms, it is prone to the effects of that high energy.”

The heavy swells and high tides resulting from what was called Western Australia’s ‘storm of the decade‘ not only impacted the Margaret River attraction but also left thousands of homes without power, felled trees down and caused widespread property damage.

The damaging winds and severe weather lasted for much of the south of the state until well into Monday night before easing off as the storm passed.

The walkway to the Instagram-friendly blue boathouse in Crawley was also inundated in the storm.

Images: The Canal Rocks walk bridge being impacted during the storm (top, courtesy of YouTube/ABC) and tides beneath the bridge at sunset (below, courtesy of Your Margaret River).