A MASSIVE sink hole is swallowing up the beach at Inskip, north of Tin Can Bay.
Campers have told The Courier-Mail the hole, which appeared about 11am, could be up to 100 feet deep.
Camper Shane Hillhouse said four-wheel-drives had been travelling along the popular stretch of sand, near Inskip Peninsula, shortly before the hole appeared.
``This has the potential to take the tip of Inskip Point with it – this is huge and on a scale I’ve never seen before,’’ he said.
``People are bringing chairs and sitting back to watch it in awe.
``This is absolutely amazing – it’s almost at the tree line now.’’
Mr Hillhouse said the sink hole had expanded dramatically since 11am.
``It’s three times bigger than it was an hour ago,’’ he said.
``Chunks are falling out of the beach into nowhere. Where is the sand going? It’s just incredible.’’
Another camper said sand was dropping 150m into the ocean, although the depth of the hole is unknown.
``Sand is sinking in big sections,’’ he said.
No one is believed to have been injured.
Gympie police duty officer Sergeant Vic Tipman said sink holes – which swallowed portions of beach as big as houses – were common at Inskip.
``Normally it will be between Inskip Point and where the barge goes across,’’ he said.
``The sand just erodes from underneath the current and all of a sudden half the beach disappears.
``You’ve got to be careful driving up there.’’
Sergeant Tipman said it was only a matter of time before someone was injured.
``The potential is always there,’’ he said.
``About once every two or three years a piece as big as a house or maybe two house blocks disappear in the sand.
``It would be hundreds of metres wide. Big areas get washed out.
``What’s going to happen one day is Inskip Point is not going to be there anymore.’’
CAMPERS are watching in awe as a giant sinkhole swallows a popular stretch of beach at Inskip Point, near Rainbow Beach north of Tin Can Bay.
A 100m-wide stretch of beach has been sucked into the ocean since 10.30am, and trees were this afternoon being pulled under.
Visitor Rhonda Harris said it was a "phenomenon".
"When we first came up about 11am the water was actually bubbling like it was boiling," she said.
"We saw the 'no camping' sign get washed out."
Camper Shane Hillhouse said four-wheel-drives had been travelling along the popular stretch of sand, near Inskip Peninsula, shortly before the hole appeared.
"This has the potential to take the tip of Inskip Point with it this is huge and on a scale I've never seen before," he said.
No one is believed to have been injured.
Gympie police duty officer Sergeant Vic Tipman said sink holes, which swallowed portions of beach as big as houses, were common at Inskip.
"You've got to be careful driving up there," he said.
"It would be hundreds of metres wide. Big areas get washed out.
"What's going to happen one day is Inskip Point is not going to be there any more."
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