An important reminder for visitors near and afar, the Cement Creek Road Bridge providing access to the Redwood Forest in East Warburton is currently closed while awaiting works.
A large group of around 25 tourists learnt this the hard way when they had to be rescued on Thursday 29 December, finding the bridge deconstructed and unable to make it across safely.
A statement from Yarra Ranges Council said they are disappointed to hear reports of people ignoring the closure and walking through the construction site to get to the forest, with electronic road signs and safety barricades in the area and at the bridge for some time warning visitors of the closure.
The bridge upgrades will recommence once the Warburton Highway has been repaired by VicRoads, who in their latest community update stated that the landslip repair works will begin in February. Heavy machinery required for the bridge upgrade can not arrive until the highway is repaired.
Six CFA vehicles from Monbulk, Wandin, Wesburn and Warburton brigades as well as the SES Upper Yarra Unit responded to the 29 December rescue at around 6.20pm. Victoria Police and Ambulance Victoria also attended the scene.
Incident Controller and Warburton 1st Lieutenant Ronald McIntosh said the bridge is currently being deconstructed and will eventually be replaced.
“The boards were not fixed to the bridge and it was unsafe to cross,” he said.
“Monbulk and Wandin CFA rescue crews provided eight transport harnesses, which allowed us to tether them to the existing guide ropes on the construction site and have them travel across slowly one at a time. This incident was definitely a first for us.”
The group was slowly brought back over the bridge one at a time, with the existing safety line on the construction site used to assist the tourists across the bridge in harnesses, eight metres above the Yarra River below.
By 8.15pm, the entire group had been safely led across the bridge and the scene was declared safe.
