UPDATE, WEDNESDAY 10:20am: The City of Greater Bendigo has said it was not approached to manage traffic at yesterday’s Anzac Day March in Elmore that almost resulted in a car colliding with children and war veterans.
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The council website explained it can offer traffic management for public events but a spokeswoman said no request for assistance came from organisers at the Elmore RSL.
UPDATE, 4.20pm: Police are investigating the close call between a car and pedestrians at this morning’s Anzac Day march in Elmore.
Campaspe inspector Geoff Owen said police were aware of the near miss that occurred about 10am this morning.
Organisers had not confirmed police attendance at the event, Inspector Owen said.
RSL president Jeff Crust told Fairfax Media on Tuesday he expected a police would be present to oversee traffic.
“Planning for the safe passage of the parade is the responsibility of organisers,” he said.
“Police will investigate to see if an offence has been committed.”
UPDATE, 3.30pm: The president of the Elmore RSL has detailed his concern at the lack of traffic management during this morning’s Anzac march that nearly met with disaster when passing traffic did not stop for parade participants.
Mr Crust told Fairfax Media he was expecting a bigger police presence than in previous years.
"But no one [police] turned up this morning . . . [and] we just had to get on with it," he said.
The RSL president said he enlisted the help of an adult to try to get motorists to slow down, ahead of the march.
"Every time we tried to stop the traffic cars just kept streaming through," he said.
"They must have been blind if they couldn't see 100 people lining up, with a pipe band. We were quite visible on that part of the Northern Highway.
"It was Anzac Day, and it was that time of day [for marches] . . . but these drivers didn't hesitate. They just don't slow down through this little town. Motorists in these little country towns just aren't considerate.
"This particular driver seemed to think he was on the Northern Highway, and it belonged to him."
Mr Crust said he would take matters into his own hands next year, if necessary.
"I will make a decision, and I will get some residents to park a car across the road, or I might even get them to park a fire engine there.
"I'll take the law into my own hands, but we will have our march and we will stop the traffic, one way or another."
EARLIER: MARCHERS – including children – taking part in an Anzac Day service at Elmore this morning have narrowly avoided being skittled by a passing car.
Footage shot by the Bendigo Advertiser shows a couple of vehicles pass by as the procession waits to cross the Northern Highway on its way to the Memorial Hall.
But as the three children leading the march start to cross the busy road a sedan drives past perilously close.
Elmore RSL president Jeff Crust said “I don’t know what happened there” in reference to the absence of police officers controlling traffic.
“We’re only a single policeman town, so when he’s not scheduled on, it makes it difficult. In the past few years the police officers have come from Bendigo to manage traffic (on Anzac Day).”
More to come.