HOMEOWNERS near where a landslide occurred in McCrae have been warned to stay away as the potential for the slope to move may continue for days or weeks to come.
Authorities are investigating after the landslide occurred on the morning of 14 January, destroying a home after it slid down a cliff and leaving one man hospitalised.
Emergency services were called to the incident on Penny Lane, on the corner of Point Nepean Rd, about 8.45am after the house collapsed. A council worker aged in his 50s was taken to Frankston hospital in a stable condition after sustaining lower body injuries. It is understood he was inspecting the home impacted by the landslip when he was forced to jump to safety.
Mayor Cr Anthony Marsh said in a statement last Friday that the shire was working closely with the SES and other emergency services and relevant agencies after 15 properties had been evacuated.
He said while the cause of the landslide remained unknown, “geotechnical assessments are ongoing and South East Water is also conducting extensive testing to determine the source of the water contributing to the landslip, and we are monitoring ground movements closely”.
“An exclusion zone remains in place to ensure the safety of the community. We urge everyone to stay clear of the area,” he said. “This remains a complex and evolving issue, and we assure the community that our best people are diligently investigating the source and cause of the landslip. We are also focused on identifying the necessary rectification and remediation works to make the area safe again.
“We are in direct contact with affected residents and homeowners and will continue to provide updates as new information becomes available.” The shire has also set up a drop-in centre at the Dromana Visitor Information Centre providing access to information and referral to support services.
Meanwhile, a VicEmergency advice alert remained active for homeowners and the public to “stay away from the impacted area”. “Stay informed. Stay away from the landslide. The slope may continue to move for hours or days afterwards,” it said.
A WorkSafe spokeswoman said it was “assessing the matter and will continue to monitor the site to ensure occupational health and safety obligations are being met”. Their investigation will include speaking to relevant parties, including any witnesses, collecting evidence and taking photographs among other steps and “taking enforcement action when there is evidence of a contravention”.
Cr Marsh said, “until investigations are complete, we cannot comment on the likely cause”.
However, Professor Ha Bui, the head of the Department of Civil Engineering at Monash University, said landslides resulted from factors like prolonged rainfall, unstable soil, underground water seepage, and human activities such as excavation. “On the Mornington Peninsula, recent weather patterns, along with reports of persistent underground water bubbling in the area, point to the possibility of internal erosion – a process that gradually weakens the soil structure due to underground seepage flow, ultimately leading to slope instability and triggering a collapse,” he said.
While he said predictability was difficult, signs included water seepage, ground cracks, or landform changes “can highlight high-risk areas”. “Advances in real-time monitoring, satellite imaging, and geotechnical modelling are making it increasingly feasible to detect and forecast these risks with improved accuracy,” he said.
In terms of a future risk, Bui said a failed slope was “more prone to further landslides if underlying conditions aren’t resolved”. “Continuous monitoring and early detection systems are crucial to reducing risks.”
The owner of the home destroyed in the landslide, Nick Moran, said they “are very grateful that nobody died”. “Our thoughts are for the injured Mornington Peninsula Shire employee who we understand is in a stable condition,” he said in a statement. Moran said they would be taking a “measured approach to working through this with all the relevant parties”. Moran also noted that a separate landslip had occurred a week prior to the incident, when an uphill property impacted their home.
“We had a 30-tonne landslide at our vacation home. It looks like it has destroyed our house which doesn’t matter in the overall scheme of things but narrowly missed my daughter and wife let alone the stack of people we entertained there over the break,” he said. “I know everyone goes through stuff and don’t necessarily get a positive outcome but on this occasion, I know how bloody lucky we are.”
Moran said he had engaged a lawyer regarding the most recent landslip.
A previous landslip in the area occurred in 2022 when homes were evacuated. Longtime McCrae resident Simon McKeon said the slip was a “wake up call”. “We have the opportunity to take this seriously, and really get to the bottom of how humanity can co-exist with the natural environment.
“It may require a cold, hard assessment of the facts, but it has to be done.”
Resident Peter Clarke told The News while his home was not impacted by the landslip, he noted “there’s a range of those properties that have always looked precarious, and you’re conscious of the large amounts of stormwater that do wander around those hills.” Clarke said he was on a morning walk when he came across the “pretty dramatic” scenes of the home reduced to a pile of rubble when it crashed into surrounding trees. “The whole house slipped and broke into two,” he said.
Tanina Osborne posted a video to Facebook of the aftermath, saying “we heard this almighty sound, and I thought a truck had lost a whole lot of gravel but instead it was this house”.
SES set up a marquee at the scene last week as they worked with emergency services, including evacuating properties. Sorrento SES duty controller Peter LeBouef told The News it “was an ongoing situation” with geotechnical engineers investigating. “A number of people have been relocated successfully, and it’s just a wait and see situation,” he said. A WorkSafe spokeswoman said it was “assessing the matter and will continue to monitor the site to ensure occupational health and safety obligations are being met”.
South East Water’s service delivery general manager Tim Lloyd said it was working with “key authorities and providing assistance where appropriate”. “Our thoughts are with those impacted by this landslide event,” he said. “The cause of the landslide is still undetermined; it would be inappropriate to comment further until this work has been completed.”
At the time of going to print, Point Nepean Rd was closed to general traffic between Latrobe Pde and Coburn Ave with limited access for local vehicles. There was no access through the exclusion zone, but council expected the closure to last at least a week and were working with the Department of Transport to enhance road management and redirect traffic away from local roads. The Bay Trail path remained open, providing pedestrian and bike access around the front of the exclusion zone.
First published in the Mornington News – 20 January 2025
