Incredible footage of ‘ephemeral event’ in Victoria

Locals of a small town have celebrated the occurrence of a rare natural event which has brought a stream of tourists to the area.

Thousands have been left revelling after heavy rain in Victoria forced the breaking of a river that hasn’t spilt into the ocean for five years.

Incredible scenes were captured on Monday at Lake Tyers in East Gippsland as water gushed into the Tasman Sea for the first time since 2016.

The wide sandbar that usually contained the lake slowly fell away due to Victoria’s recent heavy rain and flooding, according to a website that monitored changes to Lake Tyers Beach.

The water level reached a high of 229cm before it broke, which was 29cm higher than its previous high recorded on June 5, the site revealed.

Locals shared footage online of the event, which was celebrated for its significance in symbolising “a time of fresh life and change”.

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Lake Tyers broke into the ocean on Monday for the first time in five years. Picture: Facebook/Chris Rykers

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“This is an ephemeral event in the life cycle of the lake and marks a time of fresh life and change,” one person shared in a post.

The monitoring website said a 60mm dumping of rain was the final straw for the lake, which by Tuesday had dropped rapidly in volume since breaking.

“The lake seems to have opened naturally at the eastern end where the sandbar was thinnest,” the update read.

The author reported “various antics” from people during the breaking of the bar, including some who tried digging the thicker part with a kayak paddle.

“Most of the lake will have emptied in a day or two and then we will have to see how long it stays tidal for,” they added.

It was expected fish species including snapper, leatherjackets and salmon would restock the lake and “provide a feast for the local sea fish”.

“It has been a great local relief for the Lake to open again since this time of year in 2016,” the site said.

More than 10,000 people viewed aerial footage captured by local man Chris Rykers on Monday at 7.30am.

Locals have reported a large stream of visitors keen to catch a glimpse of the amazing scene, which had given a much-needed boost to local businesses following the tumultuous coronavirus period.

Some were photographed in wetsuits enjoying the abundant volume of sea foam that had formed on the shoreline.

Originally published as Incredible footage of ‘ephemeral event’ in Victoria