The only hotel in the small Gippsland town of Buchan has been destroyed by fire overnight.
Country Fire Authority spokesman Glenn Thompson said crews set off to save the Buchan Caves Hotel, 350 kilometres east of Melbourne, after receiving a call at midnight on Tuesday that it was engulfed in flames.
Mr Thompson said it took 55 firefighters and nine fire trucks about 90 minutes to bring the fire under control.
The pub, which was built in the 1890s, was also the only accommodation of its type in the area. The blaze has left a damage bill of about $1 million.
CFA duty officer Kevin Mann told radio station 3AW it was a tragedy for Buchan residents.
“It was the only hotel in this small township, so certainly it’s a sad loss for the locals,” he said.
