Back-up plan for Falls

Bushfire risk prompts festival organisers to opt for Winchelsea farm as alternative

A WINCHELSEA farm would host the massive Falls Festival under an emergency back-up plan prepared by organisers of the New Year’s event.

Ash Sounds Pty Ltd has applied for a permit to host the iconic festival on a 161-hectare slice of farmland on Barwon Park Rd.

A permit would allow the organisers to quickly set up an alternative site for the 16,500patron festival if conditions forced the move from the established base at Lorne.

The switch was forced on the festival in 2015 due to the threat posed by a fire that wiped out more than 100 homes in nearby Wye River and Separation Creek.

The Falls was quickly moved to Mt Duneed Estate in Waurn Ponds, which has become synonymous with hosting the A Day on The Green concert series.

Ash Sounds is now better prepared for an emergency relocation, identifying a private property in Winchelsea between the two major highways that is bigger than its Lorne home.

“The contingency festival site has been selected due to its easy accessibility, road access and low fire risk,” its application reads.

The promoter’s planning comes amid a legal investigation into its handling of a crowd crush at Lorne last year, which saw 20 people hospitalised and more than 60 requiring treatment.

WorkSafe may hand down its findings by September.

Keeping a close eye on proceedings is law firm Maddens, which has signed more than 70 festival patrons to a classaction lawsuit.

Other people injured in the crush, which happened after a set by Sydney band DMA’s in the Grand Theatre big tent, are pursuing individual legal claims. General public tickets for the 2017 Falls Festival go on sale tomorrow.