'Lives in danger' as South Australia's only Bureau of Meteorology wave buoy fails yet again

South Australia's sole Bureau of Meteorology wave buoy, located off Kangaroo Island, has ceased transmitting data for the third time in under two years. The Cape du Couedic buoy stopped sending information on May 30 during a stormy weekend, prompting technicians to assess the cause once the equipment is recovered.

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Once the buoy is recovered.

The buoy is vital for providing data on swell direction, period, and wave height, which are relied upon by professional shellfish divers, fishers, surfers, and oceanographers. However, it has a history of failures. In August 2024, it began transmitting erroneous data and was taken offline for nine months, with repairs delayed by a supply issue for a specialist mooring sourced from Canada. The fix lasted only five months before a mooring failure caused the buoy to wash ashore, rendering it inoperable for about six weeks.

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Timing of recovery will depend on factors such as a period of safe weather conditions.

Despite these recurring issues, the Bureau of Meteorology anticipates the buoy will be operational again within three to six weeks, depending on the cause of the latest outage and parts availability. Initial assessments suggest the current problem is not a mooring failure, and the buoy remains in position.

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One of the parts for the replacement system is a specialist mooring sourced from Canada, which the bureau understands experienced a supply issue and has recently been resolved.

However, the repeated failures have raised concerns within the fishing industry. Ben Barnes, chairperson of the SA Professional Fishers Association, stated that while many fishers use multiple technologies, the failure of critical equipment like the wave buoy puts lives in danger. He emphasized the need for public awareness when equipment is not functioning, to prevent reliance on false information. "If something's not working, it puts lives in danger," Barnes said, adding that even a lack of data can lead to complacency, with fishers potentially heading out in unsafe conditions. "All our industry members rely on technologies, and it's not just the buoy, it's the likes of mobile phone services. It's everything. We want to ensure fishers get back home to their families safe."

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However, this will be dependent on the cause of the outage and available parts.