Beyond the Valley music festival traffic jam: Cars banked up for nine hours in Victoria

New Year’s revellers trying to leave an open air music festival were stranded in searing heat for up to nine hours with traffic because of a major traffic jam on the only road out.

Some even cut holes through wire fences to escape the chaos at Beyond the Valley music festival, held in Barunah Plains in rural Victoria – where the likes of Nelly Furtado and Kaytranada performed on New Year’s Eve.

Organisers have since issued a grovelling apology for ‘the delays and inconvenience caused’ after some attendees collapsed after suffering dehydration and heatstroke. 

People trying to leave an open air music festival have been stranded for nine hours in searing heat. Pictured are revellers at Beyond the Valley music festival

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Pictured is the scene where thousands of cars tried to merging into one road out

Festival-goer Monique Moor said the huge traffic tailback had ruined her festival experience.

‘There doesn’t seem to be any traffic control, and no one has managed to move in hours,’ she told the Herald Sun.

‘This is every man for himself, people have been cutting wire fences and driving through them, standing on top of cars trying to figure out what’s going on.’

Ms Moor said despite the oppressive heat reaching into the mid-30s, she and her three fellow passengers don’t want to use the aircon because they’re worried the car battery might go flat.

‘We’ve seen about ten cars break down, and most people don’t have (mobile phone) reception which makes it even more stressful,’ she said. 

People have been stranded in their cars (pictured) for up to nine hours while trying to leave the Beyond the Valley festival site

One woman was so frustrated at the traffic situation she copied Victoria Police into her tweet (pictured)

They left their campsite at 9am and hours later had only managed to move 20metres. 

Attendee Jack Morgan vented his fury at the situation on social media. 

‘About 50 lanes of traffic trying to merge into a single lane. Have now been waiting for almost 9 hours,’ he wrote on Twitter.

Another man told Channel 9 he had seen a woman who had suffered ‘heatstroke, just delirious, she was unconscious for a bit’. 

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Pictured are Beyond the Valley festival headliners Nelly Furtado (left) and Denzel Curry (right)

Three young women are pictured at the Beyond the Valley festival held at Barunah Plains, Victoria

A man called Jim tweeted (pictured) his frustration at what was happening at the festival

A man called Jim said it took his daughter nine hours to get out of the site. 

He tweeted at 5.30pm that ‘My daughter is finally leaving Beyond the Valley after waiting in her car in line since 8.30am. 

‘She said people were collapsing from dehydration and organisers had to hand out free water. Apparently no traffic management so security has that job now.’

Another parent Patrick Griffiths said it was his 18-year-old daughter’s ‘first time at a festival like this and it’s pretty troubling. 

‘You wouldn’t want there to be a fire or something. It sounds like it’s easier to get out of prison than it is to escape Beyond the Valley,’ he said.

A twitter user (pictured) tweeted about having to wait in 36 degree heat for seven hours

Two young women are pictured at the Beyond the Valley festival in Barunah Plains, Victoria

A woman is pictured at the Beyond the Valley festival held in Victoria over the New Year’s holiday weekend

Organisers said the influx of cars exiting the festival, as well as general holiday traffic on the roads caused the traffic jam.

‘We are experiencing traffic delays getting out of the festival today due to the influx of cars exiting the festival, as well as general holiday traffic on the roads,’ the festival said on Instagram amid a wave of complaints.

‘Our team have buggies doing water drops at cars, we have ample water tanks around the site to fill up bottles as well.

‘We understand this process is not pleasant in the heat.

‘Our priority is to get everyone home safely.’