'Heartbeat' of community destroyed in devastating fire in Victoria

A small regional Victorian town is reeling from a devastating fire that destroyed the "heartbeat" of their community overnight.

More than 70 firefighters worked tirelessly to control the blaze, that started just after 12.30am at the Morwell Bowling Club.

Morwell Fire Rescue Victoria captain Shane Mynard said despite the best efforts of crews, about 80 per cent of the building was destroyed.

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It took fire crews more than two hours to contain the blaze, after the response was hampered by a lack of water supply in the area.

"There is significant damage and for a community, it's more a community hub it's known for its meals, catering and functions. They support a lot of volunteer organisations and that will have an impact on them," Mynard said.

"I hope the local community can get behind them and they can get back into business."

Firefighters were forced to step back from direct firefighting when the roof and part of the building collapsed.

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Chairman Jeffery Sawyer said they had just invested $7 million into the new complex. 

Said they had just invested $7 million into the new complex. 

He said while the club was covered by insurance, it was still heartbreaking.

"It's devastating," Sawyer said.

"We were completely booked out until Christmas this year and we are major sponsors to lots of sporting clubs in the valley."

The club has about 2000 members. 

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Morwell MP Martin Cameron described the club as the "heartbeat" of the community.

"It's absolutely devasting for the community and there's up to 70 staff that work here and are probably wondering what their next move is," he said.

Fire investigators are now combing through the site to establish what started the blaze.

Morwell is located about 152km east of Melbourne.