Bombo is a suburb of the

Municipality of Kiama The Municipality of Kiama is a local government area in the Illawarra region of New South Wales, Australia. The area is situated south of Shellharbour and the City of Wollongong and is located adjacent to the Pacific Ocean, the Princes Highway ...

, in the

Illawarra The Illawarra is a coastal Regions of New South Wales, region in the southeast of the Australian state of New South Wales. It is situated immediately south of Sydney and north of the South Coast, New South Wales, South Coast region. It encompas ...

region of New South Wales, Australia. It is located north of

Kiama Kiama may refer to: * Electoral district of Kiama, a seat in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly * Kiama, New South Wales, a town * Kiama (spider), a genus of spiders *Municipality of Kiama The Municipality of Kiama is a local government ar ...

Etymology

Bombo is derived from "Thumbon", the name of a renowned headman and warrior born in this district.

Infrastructure

Bombo is the gateway between

and its northern suburbs, Kiama Downs and Minnamurra. The

Princes Highway Princes Highway is a major road in Australia, extending from Sydney via Melbourne to Adelaide through the states of New South Wales, Victoria (Australia), Victoria and South Australia. It has a length of (along Highway 1) or via the former ...

runs through Bombo. In November 2005 a new six lane road opened replacing the original two lane road.

Bombo railway station Bombo railway station is a heritage-listed single-platform intercity train station located at Bombo, in the Illawarra region of New South Wales, Australia. The station is served by the NSW TrainLink South Coast line, with trains traveling sou ...

opened in 1887 as the terminus of the

Illawarra railway line The South Coast Railway (also known as the Illawarra railway or the South Coast line) is a Commuter rail, passenger and Rail freight transport, freight railway line from Sydney to Wollongong and Bomaderry, New South Wales, Bomaderry in New So ...

. In 1893 the line was extended to

. It is the closest railway station to the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...

in New South Wales. In the 1950s the

New South Wales Government Railways New South Wales Government Railways (NSWGR) was an agency of the Government of New South Wales that administered rail transport in the colony, and then the state, of New South Wales, Australia, between 1855 and 1932. History The NSWGR built ...

established a

ballast Ballast is dense material used as a weight to provide stability to a vehicle or structure. Ballast, other than cargo, may be placed in a vehicle, often a ship or the gondola of a balloon or airship, to provide stability. A compartment within ...

quarry.

Boral Boral Limited is an Australian building and construction materials company. It is owned by Seven Group Holdings. History Boral was founded by David Craig on 4 March 1946 as Bitumen and Oil Refineries (Australia) Limited with Ampol, Caltex havi ...

operated an adjoining quarry from the 1970s until 2014.

The Bombo disaster

The basalt quarry at Bombo was the site of a serious accident on 7 May 1888, when an explosive charge detonated prematurely and a mass of rock fell to the ground below where men were working. Four were killed and several severely injured. ("The Bombo disaster" could also refer to the 539-ton SS ''Bombo'' which sank off

Wollongong Wollongong ( ; Dharawal: ''Woolyungah'') is a city located in the Illawarra region of New South Wales, Australia. The name is believed to originate from the Dharawal language, meaning either 'five islands/clouds', 'ground near water' or 'sound ...

in heavy seas on 22 February 1949 and Captain Bell and 11 other men died. The ship was owned by Quarries Pty Ltd. and carrying stone from the Kiama quarries to Sydney.)

Geography

Bombo's main waterway is Spring Creek. Boneyard Falls, an oceanic wave action waterfall, are located on the Bombo Headland.

Heritage listings

Bombo has a number of heritage-listed sites, including: * Illawarra railway:

* Princes Highway: Bombo Headland Quarry Geological Site

References