UPDATE: The owner of a Lake Mulwala cruise boat has thanked the dozens of people who assisted as the vessel took on water during wild weather on Monday night.
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Paradise Queen owner Travis Smith said the boat had been moored when a storm "chopped up the water pretty badly".
Waves entered the rear of the vessel with pumps required to remove the water, as volunteers stood on the front of the boat to try to balance it.
Mr Smith said the boat was usually moved to a safer location when bad weather was forecast.
"But this sort of sprung up on us and got us and the other boat operators by surprise," he said.
"The water was surging into the back of the boat which was not ideal.
"So now we're essentially going through a bit of a clean up process to make sure everything's okay."
Mr Smith said the design of the boat meant it wouldn't have sunk.
"It will keep taking a hammering, but you don't want to leave the boat in that vulnerable position taking damage," he said.
"That's why they tried to lift the front so it didn't keep taking on the waves."
The boat has been moved to a lagoon behind Chinamans Bend.
The owners hope it will resume operations by the weekend.
"The main this is it shows how good living in a small community is," he said.
"There were so many people willing to come and help us out and we're very appreciative of that.
"My wife myself and our family are so grateful that so many people were willing to come down and help out."
EARLIER: Emergency crews have prevented a boat from sinking in Lake Mulwala, with volunteers on board the vessel able to safely escape.
The Paradise Queen started taking on water on the lake on Monday night on the Yarrawonga foreshore.
There were strong winds and choppy waters at the time.
Emergency workers, including police, firefighters and SES members from both sides of the border were alerted about 8.50pm.
Video filmed by a bystander shows a large amount of water being pumped from the rear of the boat after it made its way to the banks, with at least a dozen people on board the vessel.
Video of the incident has been viewed more than 100,000 times.
An SES spokeswoman said nobody was hurt.
IN OTHER NEWS:
The boat was saved and was reportedly taken to another area.
Comment is being sought from the owner of the vessel.
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