Authorities have closed access to one of the Great Ocean Road's most popular tourist attractions amid fears of a potentially fatal cliff collapse.
The beach steps at Loch Ard Gorge, situated just moments away from the world famous Twelve Apostles in south-west Victoria, have been closed to the public following a rock fall at a cliff which overlooks the stairs.
A temporary fence has been installed to close the site and geotechnical engineers have been dispatched to examine the risk.
Parks Victoria's area chief ranger Michael Smith said the area was closed while experts examined the damage.
"A [cliff] collapse could cause serious injuries, and even deaths, if people were in the area," Mr Smith said.
"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."
Loch Ard Gorge is a four-and-a-half-hour drive from Melbourne along the Great Ocean Road.
It sits a short drive north-west of the Twelve Apostles, and just moments from the Island Archway which famously collapsed in 2009.
The two remaining pillars of the archway are now known as Tom and Eva, named after the lone survivors of the shipwrecked Loch Ard which came aground in the gorge in 1878, killing all but two passengers.
Construction underway
The temporary closure comes as construction on the long-awaited site at Saddle Lookout is paused over winter.
The Saddle Lookout area has been closed since late 2021 while a new lookout was constructed.
The new site is expected to be finished later this year.
Parks Victoria is urging people not to ignore the various closures.
"Please respect the closure and don't put yourself at risk by trying to go down the steps," Mr Smith said.
The closure comes as Parks Victoria commences the evaluation of tenders for the construction of another new lookout at the Loch Ard blow hole.
Construction on that new facility, which is backed by $5.5 million in state government funding, is expected to start later this year.
