Iconic spot on Great Ocean Road blocked off amid cliff collapse fears

Authorities have blocked off one of Australia’s most popular natural tourist attractions amid fears of a potentially fatal cliff collapse.

Authorities have blocked off one of Australia’s most popular natural tourist attractions amid fears of a potentially fatal cliff collapse.

Parks Victoria have blocked off the beach steps at Loch Ard Gorge on The Great Ocean Road after a crack was found in a nearby cliff face following a rock fall.

An area of the Loch Ard Gorge has been blocked off amid fears of a rock collapse. Picture: Istock

The “significant safety risk” to visitors prompted authorities to install a temporary fence near the steps to keep visitors out while geotechnical engineers have been called in to assess the site.

Parks Victoria’s area chief ranger Michael Smith said a cliff collapse “could cause serious injuries, and even deaths, if people were in the area.”

“As a responsible land manager we have to take a safety-first approach and close access when there’s a known risk of a landslide or cliff collapse,” he said in a statement.

The gorge is a short drive northwest of the world famous Twelve Apostles, and more than four-and-a-half hour drive from Melbourne along the picturesque Great Ocean Road.

It is also just moments from the Island Archway, which famously collapsed in 2009.

The Island Archway near the Loch Ard Gorge before it collapsed.

Millions of tourists flock to the south Victorian region every year and the gorge is one of the most popular on the Great Ocean Road, loved for its smooth bay and turquoise waters flanked by yellow, rippling cliff faces pocked with tufts of greenery.

The site is named after the shipwrecked Loch Ard which beached in the gorge in 1878 after colliding with a rock reef and running around near Mutton Bird Island.

Only two of the 54 passengers aboard survived: Tom Pearce, a 19-year-old sailor’s apprentice, and Eva Charmichael, who was also 19-years-old and was travelling with her family.

The two remaining pillars of the fallen Island Archway are now named after them.

The closure comes after construction of Saddle Lookout at the Twelve Apostles was paused for winter. Picture: Parks Victoria

The temporary closure comes just days after construction on the long-awaited Saddle Lookout site near the Twelve Apostles was paused over winter.

The new Saddle Lookout set to replace viewing areas that “no longer cater to visitor numbers” in the area and provide a “superior, safer, and more accessible experience” for viewing the iconic landmarks.

The area has been closed since 2021 while the new lookout was constructed.

Parks Victoria said the final major pieces of the project have been delivered and craned into position ahead of the winter pause, and it is expected to be completed at the end of this year.

The Loch Ard Gorge closure also comes as Parks Victoria begins evaluating tenders for the construction of another lookout over the Loch Ard Blow Hole, which is expected to start later this year.

Parks Victoria ranger Mr Smith urged people to take caution if and when they visit the closed area.

“Please respect the closure and don’t put yourself at risk by trying to go down the steps,” he said.