A witness at the scene said it began leaning about 8am, with one of the trailer's stands going through the asphalt surface near the Sutton Street roundabout.

There was also damage to the surrounding concrete kerb, as the container veered precariously towards the median strip.

The container was lifted off the trailer with a crane, before the trailer itself was lifted out of the hole and reattached to the truck.

The crane itself caused more damage to the road, until wooden blocks were put under its stands, as it lifted the container off the trailer.

No one was injured in the incident.

A witness said truck drivers had previously been warned about parking in the area, due to the pothole damage.

Rough weather conditions in the past few days may have also affected the surface - several other areas, including in rural areas, have also seen damage.

While at the scene, The Courier also witnessed several people using their phones to take photos while driving past on La Trobe Street - while several stopped, some were photographed with phones in their hands.

Drivers caught on their phones face a $484 fine and four demerit points.

VicRoads has responsibility for the road - western regional director Mal Kersting said in a statement the incident would be investigated.

"During periods of high rainfall, water can get underneath the road surface and destabilise the pavement," he said.

"We carry out regular inspections across our network to identify hazards or any improvements that might be needed - but given it has been such a wet winter so far, incidents like this can sometimes happen.

"This is the first time this type of incident has occurred in this particular area. We'll investigate the source of the water which has caused this damage and stabilise the area in the coming weeks."

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