Passage perils

By Tania Martin
YARRA Ranges Shire has rushed to block access to a dangerous ravine and network of tunnels in Mt Evelyn because of public safety fears.
The tunnels are down a ravine on private land off McKillop Road.
Mt Evelyn’s Mark Rawson and Robert Kuipers first raised concerns with the Mail several weeks ago.
Mr Kuipers said there was increasing evidence that children had been playing down the ravine.
He feared that someone would be seriously injured.
The Shire of Yarra Ranges rushed to check out the situation after the Mail raised several questions regarding public safety, on Friday 27 March.
When councillor Tim Heenan originally heard the story he thought it might be part of the decommissioned O’Shannassay aquaduct.
The next day he met Mr Rawson and a group of other concerned locals.
“We decided to check it out and see what’s happening down there,” he said.
“It wasn’t hard to get into and once you where inside it went down about two metres and then it opened up. You could stand up,” he said.
But he said that was as far as the group got.
Mr Rawson said he believed an investigation would lead to the discovery of a World War II tunnel system but Cr Heenan said the tunnels were believed to date back to the mining era of the late 1800s.
He said it was concerning that children had been down there.
Although it was amazing to unearth a bit of Mt Evelyn’s history, he said the ravine and the tunnels were a safety concern.
“When you put all the romanticising away, it rings real warning bells,” he said.
Cr Heenan called for the council to take action to provide some way to prevent anyone else getting access to the land and the ravine.
“I am very concerned about this,” he said.
“I agree it’s dangerous and needs to be blocked off … no one ever thought in 2009 something like this would still exist in Mt Evelyn.”
Cr Heenan’s son Tommy, 22, even remembers playing in the area when he went to St Mary’s Primary School.
The land in question runs up behind the school.
“We called it the black hole … it was big and scary and we went down there a couple of times,” Tommy said.
“We climbed down into the ravine but never went any further than that.”
Yesterday (Monday) Cr Heenan said the council was seeking to put up a temporary barrier to stop children gaining access.
“We will have to speak to the owner of the land about getting something more permanent,” he said.
“I am very concerned about young children getting down there, especially with the school holidays starting.”
The Mail tried to contact the owner of the land but was unable to get a response before going to print.