‘What on earth’: Mystery highway-clogging machinery revealed

A massive machine travelling on the South Eastern Freeway this week had motorists in awe of its size and left residents wondering just what the monstrosity was. Find out exactly what it was.

A massive machine travelling on the South Eastern Freeway this week had motorists in awe of its size and left residents wondering just what the monstrosity was.

The large machine was spotted going through Murray Bridge on Thursday, May 11, and a community Facebook page had hundreds of comments speculating what it might have been.

Residents watching the truck pulling the mystery machinery through Murray Bridge’s streets noted it was so large it could not be contained on the road, damaging kerbside artificial turf as a result.

Mystery highway-clogging machinery revealed as a bin sorter for a sawmill. Picture: Facebook.

Of the many explanations of what it was, Facebook poster Sharon Griffin offered the most helpful, identifying the machine as a bin sorter for a sawmill.

“These are bin sorters heading out to the SA Pine site and have been on a massive mission from Dartmoor,” she said.

“The logistics were incredible with Victorian police, SAPOL and SA Power (Networks),’ she said.

Mystery highway-clogging machinery revealed as a bin sorter for a sawmill. Picture: Facebook.

SA Pine general manager Ian Robinson confirmed the bin sorter had travelled across the border and was being stored at Monarto.

“We are storing that for another company, KSI Sawmills … we are offering a bit of short term space so it can be sorted until it can be installed,” he said.

“It’s a bin sorter, it goes on the end of a sawmill and when the log is cut up into boards … when it goes through the sawmill process it cuts various sizes and lengths and the bin sorter is like an automated packing system.

“It was out of a defunct sawmill in Dartmoor, Victoria.”