told them not to speak to the media. An unnamed Hideaway Resorts spokeswoman said, "They (staff) were given the choice to leave or stay and many chose to stay and bunker down". Hideaway Resorts Director Andrew Menzies denied staff were forced to stay, but could not be evacuated because the cyclone tracked south late on 2 February 2011. Menzies was quoted as saying, "We followed cyclone procedures, there was never a forced evacuation communicated to anyone ... We have cyclone-rated buildings to a category 5, so this was actually the safest place to be". Rupert Greenhough from Hideaway Resorts said the island followed "established cyclone procedures", which did not include provision for mass evacuation of staff. Hideaway Resorts CEO Mark Campbell and Director Andrew Menzies flew by helicopter to Dunk Island on 3 February 2011 to assess the damage. Chairman Rupert Greenhough expressed relief that staff had survived the cyclone and described that outcome as a testament to the planning and preparations undertaken. On 4 February 2011, staff, other than a skeleton team, were stood down until the resort was to be rebuilt, evacuated from the island by helicopters and water taxis, and offered counselling. The Herald Sun reported that when management became aware that journalists were on the island, they were ushered away from staff and directed to speak to the island's Melbourne-based co-owner and the manager of the resort. On 5 February 2011, the Sunshine Coast Daily reported that statements purporting to cover Bedarra Resort released by management of Hideaway Resorts on 4 February 2011 actually referred to only its Dunk Island property that neighbours Bedarra Island. Dunk Island Resort infrastructure damage The damage to the resort was described as being very severe, with much of the resort needing to be completely rebuilt. The usually cyclone-hardy palm trees were stripped. The resort's pool was filled with sand from the storm surge, the function hall was gutted, and the health centre was unroofed. Almost all of the beachfront apartments had their walls torn off. The gardens of the resort were stripped bare. In July 2012, the general manager of the island, David Henry, advised that restoration work was proceeding slowly, and the re-opening of the resort was not expected for at least eighteen months. The campsites and associated amenities blocks were expected to re-open in September 2012. In the event, restoration was continually delayed. In late 2019, it was