Posted July 24, 2018 07:50:30

Hundreds of people in Melbourne’s inner east have been evacuated from their homes after strong winds left a crane in danger of collapse.

About 300 residents in Richmond had to be moved to safety after the arm of the crane on Lennox Street was blown backwards and bent late on Monday night.

Trams along Bridge Road were stopped, and the was road closed for a period of time as workers prepared to stabilise or dismantle the crane, which is about 30 metres above the ground.

Richmond Town Hall is being used as an evacuation centre.

Strong winds caused widespread damage overnight, with about 1,500 properties still without power in Melbourne, mainly in the city’s outer east and south east.

The State Emergency Service received 373 calls for assistance across Victoria, mostly for fallen trees.

Pakenham was the worst-affected area with 20 calls for help.

The Bureau of Meteorology said gusts of about 90 kilometres per hour hit most Melbourne suburbs between 7:00pm and 10:00pm, with winds of more than 110kph recorded on Port Phillip Bay.

Topics: disasters-and-accidents, weather, richmond-3121, melbourne-3000, pakenham-3810, vic