Sinkhole near Australia beach 'stable'

Brisbane: A massive sinkhole that consumed a stretch of a beach-front in Australia's Queensland state is now "relatively stable", authorities said on Monday.

About 200 metres of beachfront and 50 metres of a popular campground at Inskip Point opened up late Saturday night, causing a 7.5-metre-deep cavity, ABC reported.

"Advice is that the event has likely passed with the site now relatively stable with a flat beach edge forming," the statement issued by the department of national parks said.

"Erosion may continue to occur slowly for some weeks."

A geotechnical engineer said that the event may have been a "near-shore landslide" rather than a sinkhole.

A caravan, four-wheel-drive camper-trailer and tents were consumed by the hole and despite the campgrounds being packed with school-holiday-makers, no one was injured.

The hole grew by around a metre this morning and may continue to expand in the coming weeks.

The MV Beagle campground and eastern section of Sarawak campground will remain closed and barriers will be extended out to 200-metre radius for safety reasons.

Six campgrounds on the peninsula still remain open.