Chaotic scenes as car meet on Melbourne’s Chapel St turns wild, police swarm area
Terrified business owners were forced to lock their doors as “absolute mayhem” unfolded when a car meet turned to chaos along the popular shopping strip.
Victoria
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Hundreds of hoons have caused the shutdown of a popular Melbourne strip on Saturday night.
Police closed parts of Chapel St in Prahran after an organised car meet turned to chaos.
Terrified business owners were forced to lock their doors as “absolute mayhem” unfolded outside, with cars hooning down the strip from 6pm.
One worker from Stella Restaurant and Bar said his boss called the police several times for help but received no response.
“The owner called the police seven times with no response and it wasn’t until about 11:30pm that we noticed police arrive,” he said.
“It was absolute mayhem, there were people riding on top of trams and cars. We had people taking our outdoor furniture out onto the street.
“We had to move everything inside and lock the doors while we still had people dining upstairs.”
The man said the incident was an “absolute mindf*ck” for local businesses.
The worker added a group of 16-year-olds dining at the Italian restaurant on Saturday night were forced to remain inside until their parents arrived to pick them up.
“They had to wait half an hour after their booking had finished because they were too scared to leave on their own,” he said.
“It was horrific.”
The event was believed to have been organised in a public Facebook group titled “Bring Back Chap Laps”, which more than 5000 people expressed interest in attending.
“We all know and love the classic chap laps which has since gone forgotten but it’s making a comeback on Saturday the 19th of July,” the event summary read.
“It’ll start at Station Pier, Port Melbourne @7:30pm. From there we’ll head over to chapel street and the night will kick off.”
The event organiser added they did not “condone burnouts or silly behaviour.”
Police crackdown on Chapel St hoons
Stonnington Local Area Commander Inspector Georgie Swinton said police were using all footage available to identify and charge reckless drivers involved in Saturday’s car meet.
“A number of drivers engaged in some really dangerous driving, and we will find those drivers,” she said.
“I know that there’s been some footage of one particular driver doing some fairly reasonable burnouts.
“We will identify him, he will be charged, and his car will be impounded.”
Inspector Swinton condemned the behaviour at one of Melbourne’s biggest entertainment precincts as “reckless and irresponsible”.
“We have pedestrians walking on the footpaths,” she said.
“If one of those cars gets out of control they’re going to take out a pedestrian.”
While rebuking the rowdy behaviour often associated with “chap laps”, Inspector Swinton said there was a “responsible way” of carrying out car meets.
“I view (chap laps) as a problem because of the nature of the behaviour of the drivers,” she said.
“If they were just doing laps of Chapel Street, it might be a little bit different, but it’s dangerous behaviour that ruins it for everybody.”
She added the “10 per cent” of reckless drivers that took it to the “next level” were to blame.
“There’s a lot of beautiful vehicles and if an event like that is run well, it’s of no harm to the community,” she said.
“Have a compliant car, drive safely and be respectful of the people around you.”
Inspector Swinton said adequate police resources were available on Saturday night and confirmed there was a police presence on Chapel St from about 6.30pm, despite local businesses complaining about a slow police response.
“We’re working with local government and other agencies at the moment to try and make Chapel Street safer,” she added.
“It’s a really excellent entertainment precinct, so it’s a real shame that there’s just a few bad eggs that ruin it for everybody.”
There was a strong police presence in the area on Saturday night as part of an operation targeting “high-risk driving activity”, police said in a statement.
“Victoria Police had a highly visible presence in Chapel Street and surrounding areas on Saturday night as part of Operation Traction,” a spokeswoman said on Sunday.
“This was a local police operation based on intelligence that a large number of people were planning to engage in intentional high-risk driving activity.
Multiple drivers caught “hooning” were fined, while defect notices were also handed out to several drivers of modified vehicles, police said.
Authorities also closed parts of Chapel St to disrupt hooning behaviour and ease traffic congestion.
The car meet began at Station Pier in Port Melbourne before drivers made their way to Chapel St.
Mayor: ‘Dangerous, unacceptable’
City of Stonnington Mayor Melina Sehr said the council “strongly condemned” the incident that unfolded on Chapel St overnight.
“This kind of illegal activity is dangerous, unacceptable and completely out of step with what our community expects for one of Melbourne’s most iconic destinations,” she said.
“Council has invested $4.38 million through the Chapel Street Precinct Improvement Plan to help restore confidence, safety and amenity to this precinct.
“What happened last night flies in the face of those efforts – and the efforts of local traders, residents and emergency services who are working hard to support positive change.”
Cr Sehr added hooning behaviour on Chapel St put lives at risk and damaged public infrastructure.
“We will be reviewing CCTV footage and handing over evidence to law enforcement, as we have done in the past,” she said.
“We will continue working closely with enforcement agencies and community stakeholders to support stronger action against illegal gatherings and unsafe driving.
“We call on all visitors to Chapel Street to respect the precinct, respect local businesses, and help us build a safer, more welcoming environment for everyone.”
A woman working at Abacus Bar and Kitchen in South Yarra, metres from where motorists performed burnouts, said “rowdy” onlookers took over the strip on Saturday night.
“Police shutdown parts of the street for at least a couple of hours … and as I was walking home I noticed a lot of old cars driving around,” she said.
“There were also a lot of rowdy people outside the restaurant and along the street watching on.”
The manager of a local Chemist Warehouse condemned the motorists, but said the movement to bring back “chap laps” didn’t come as a shock.
“People hooning is not surprising to me at all,” he said.
“I’m just thankful to finish at 5pm on a Saturday.”
Housing and Building Minister Harriet Shing slammed the behaviour seen on Chapel St as “absolutely disgraceful”.
“Safety for people in and around our roads is of paramount importance and anybody who thinks that they can go out and live in such a cavalier fashion should be absolutely condemned,” she said.
“There are strict penalties. Police will investigate and again, people have the right to be safe on and around our roads.”
In response to businesses being disappointed that not enough was being done to improve safety along Chapel St, Ms Shing recognised there was always more work to be done.
“We know there is always more work to do with road safety awareness and we will continue to work with Victoria Police to make sure the prosecutions, that testing and investigations occur when incidents arise,” she said.
Police have urged any witnesses or people with information to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
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