Twelve Apostles Now Down to Eight

The following news story from Australia Associated Press prompted me to at long last add an update here...

Monday July 4, 11:15 AM AAP

One of Twelve Apostles collapses

One of the famous Twelve Apostles has collapsed in a pile of rubble, leaving just eight of the giant limestone structures standing off Victoria's south-west coast.

It crumbled into the ocean off the Great Ocean Road at Port Campbell on Sunday.

Bystanders watched in disbelief as the second apostle took a permanent tumble, changing the landscape of the mighty stacks.

A witness told the Nine Network she was impressed she was there to see the historical collapse.

"I think it's quite spectacular actually, to see how different creations of the earth move," she said.

Other witnesses felt cheated.

"We were told to go and see the Twelve Apostles, all nine of them, and now there's eight," one said.

A Parks Victoria spokeswoman told Nine she was shocked the Twelve Apostles had whittled to eight.

"I still can't believe it," she said.

"You think these structures are going to last for a while and certainly not actually see one collapse in your lifetime."

Parks Victoria's Alex Green said he believed the loss of one of the famous attractions would not impact on tourism.

"We had a similar incident with London bridge about ten years ago and that story in itself has become quite a part of visiting the region," Mr Green said.

"It's a good opportunity for before and after photos and will generate a lot of discussion about the natural processes along this coastline and how it's always changing."

The Twelve Apostles are giant rock stacks up to 45 metres tall in the Southern Ocean.

They started to form up to 20 million years ago when erosion gradually attacked the limestone cliffs of Port Campbell.

*******************************

Here's a photo I took of the 12 Apostles last year...



And here's the new view...