Update
The Australia Day evening concert drew a large crowd to Cronulla Park, while there were still many people on the beach and in the water.
A couple of rain showers sent some people home early, but failed to stop the entertainment and party vibe, with some finding space to dance and sing along.
About 8.30pm, lifeguards ordered people out of the water ahead of the scheduled fireworks.
Sheppard, the main act, played Eagle Rock as the penultimate song and finished with their hit Geronimo.
The climax to the celebrations was a stunning display of fireworks over the ocean, which lasted about 12 minutes.
Earlier
Thousands of people flocked to Cronulla on Australia Day, most to enjoy the beach in beautiful sunny weather, others to join in the council-organised celebrations and some to do both.
There were long queues of traffic and parking was extremely hard to find. Many people heeded early warnings and arrived by train.
Every shaded area in Cronulla Park, where the concert will be held this afternoon and evening, was quickly snapped up.
Many people used picnic blankets to stake out areas in front of the stage and then disappeared. Is this the Australian way?
Behind a rope, directly in front of the stage featuring large Australian and Aboriginal flags, about 100 plastic chairs were set out for residents taking citizenship in a ceremony which started at 10am.
With the sun beating down, many of the new citizens, including children, were obviously feeling the heat. Sutherland Shire Council staff moved around, dispensing sun cream and bottles of water.
Heathcote MP Lee Evans, one of the speakers, quipped, "This is known as the Australian bake-out". Considerately, he kept his speech short.
Cook MP and former prime minister Scott Morrison was another speaker.
Cronulla MP Mark Speakman told the new citizens, "You have won the lottery of life".
"How lucky you are to join our country and how lucky are we to have you as new citizens," he said.
Following the citizenship ceremony, mayor Carmelo Pesce announced the shire's Citizen of the Year and category winners.
The Citizen of the Year is Ken Warburton, a passionate advocate and fundraiser for people with disability. He is the founder and director of the Pre WWII-Car Show and a Sylvanvale member.
Joshua Craig was named Young Citizen of the Year, Rotary Club of Caringbah is the Community Group of the Year and Kal Glanznig the Environmental Citizen of the Year.
Twelve-year-old Charla Brown, from Caringbah North Public School, provided a fitting ending, singing the National Anthem in both English and the Dharawal language.
The ceremony was over in about 45 minutes and one sensed the surf would be the next stop for many.
- A full report on the Citizenship of the Year awards will follow.
