House Tumbles Down Hill After Landslide in Victoria

A Victorian SES image of the impacted area.

One person is in Frankston Hospital after a home went tumbling down a hill after a landslide at Victoria’s picturesque Mornington Peninsula.

The home on Penny Lane came hurtling down around 9 a.m. on Jan. 14, shocking nearby residents who reported hearing loud crashing noises.

The Victorian State Emergency Service issued an alert and “advice” message for the McRae area, with the landslide affecting properties on Point Nepean Road.

The emergency service said there was no threat to the nearby foreshore camping area, but the incident has caused the closure of the Nepean Highway between McCrae and Dromana.

With the threat ongoing, multiple homes in the area are being monitored, State Emergency Service operations manager Chris Gregory told ABC Radio Melbourne.

“A couple of them were vacant holiday homes and others had residents who were working with councils and other agencies to make sure they have a safe place to go,” he said.

“We do have a road closure in place and we'll seek to lift that as soon as we possibly can.”

Residents say other homes in the area have been a concern.

“I think that entire hill is going to have to be looked at,” Tanina Osborne told AAP.

“It would be an engineer’s nightmare.”

Osborne was one of the nearby neighbours who reported hearing the terrifying sound of the home crashing down.

“I heard this really, really loud rumbling, and like a ‘crash,’” she said.

“So my husband and I ran across the road and I saw that this house had tumbled down the hill—I’ve just never seen anything like it.”

Osborne said she queried whether a water main issue had been a contributing factor.

“I’m not an expert, but you know that whole hill just has a lot going on,” she said.

Landslides Common

According to the State Emergency Service, landslides are common in Victoria, often occurring in the wake of bushfires, floods, or earthquakes.

More than 180 landslides occurred along the length of the Great Ocean Road in 2016, and more than 190 landslides were reported within the Grampians National Park in 2011.

Both of these events resulted in a significant impact on public infrastructure, tourism, and the economy.

Landslides often happen with little to no warning.

People are being urged to stay away from the impacted area and to stay up-to-date with emergency announcements.