When a storm comes through the Latrobe Valley, the calls come in together. It answers them as your business, says it’s your assistant, books the routine work and texts you what can’t wait.
OffsiteMate’s AI receptionist answers the phone for tradies in Traralgon, Morwell and the rest of the Latrobe Valley when they can’t. It says it’s your assistant, gets the job details, books routine work at times you’re free and texts you emergencies straight away, at any hour.
It’s A$299 a month for a sole trader, with 100 minutes and 150 texts included, plus A$299 once to set up. We set it up by phone from Wagga Wagga, NSW.
It costs the same on a quiet Tuesday as on the night the creek comes up.
Latrobe City Council warns that flooding can come quickly after intense rain, especially near Traralgon Creek, the Latrobe River, the Morwell River and the smaller local drains.
After the storm and flood of 9 and 10 June 2021, the government clean-up covered destroyed and damaged buildings and trees left dangerous. The council said the program would work with local contractors.
Energy Safe Victoria says storms are the most common cause of power outages, because strong winds bring trees down across lines. Roofs, fences, trees and power can all go in the same night, and the calls arrive while you’re up a ladder at the first job.
Some storm calls start as someone else’s job and end up as yours. This is who handles what.
| Ring | Why | |
|---|---|---|
| Tree on the lines, wires down, power out | AusNet, 13 17 99, 24 hours | It runs the poles and wires across eastern Victoria, the Latrobe Valley included, and wants fallen branches on lines and storm damage reported. |
| Power back in the street, not in the house | A local electrician | AusNet says check the meter box for an advice letter or defect notice. If there’s one, a local electrician does the repairs before it reconnects. |
| Flooding, storm damage, a fallen tree, sandbags | VICSES, 132 500 | Latrobe City Council lists the SES for all four. Triple zero if someone’s life is at risk. |
| Warnings and road closures | VicEmergency, 1800 226 226 | The council sends people to the VicEmergency website, app or hotline for current warnings. |
| Water or sewer fault | Gippsland Water, 1800 057 057, 24 hours | It looks after its mains and the meter. On the house side of the meter, it’s the owner’s pipe and a plumber’s job. |
| A smell of gas | The number on the gas bill | That’s Energy Safe Victoria’s advice. Australian Gas Infrastructure Group owns the networks from the Mornington Peninsula to Bairnsdale, and lists two lines: Australian Gas Networks on 1800 427 532 and Multinet Gas on 132 691. |
Read October 2026: AusNet’s contact, outage restored and Latrobe Valley battery pages, Energy Victoria’s find your distributor page and Latrobe City Council’s floods page. Water from Gippsland Water’s fault and water meter pages. Gas from the emergency pages of Energy Safe Victoria and Australian Gas Infrastructure Group.
You decide what counts. For storm work we start with these, from our trade pages, and you can add or drop any of them by text. The rest gets booked in at a time you’re free.
Latrobe City Council calls Latrobe one of Victoria’s four regional cities, and the only one in the east of the state. It takes in Moe, Morwell, Traralgon and Churchill, plus the smaller townships around them.
The ABS counts Traralgon and Morwell as one urban area: 44,085 people at 30 June 2025 (ABS estimate). Across the Latrobe (Vic.) council area it counted 867 construction businesses at 30 June 2025, down from 958 in 2022 (ABS Data by Region, read October 2026).
If you work across the valley, a fair bit of the day happens in the ute. The assistant picks up while you drive.
Latrobe City isn’t on Business Victoria’s 2026 list of councils with their own local holiday, so Cup Day applies. Your assistant answers on all of these at the same price, and books jobs only on the days your hours include.
| 2026 | 2027 | |
|---|---|---|
| Summer and autumn | ||
| New Year’s Day | Thursday 1 January | Friday 1 January |
| Australia Day | Monday 26 January | Tuesday 26 January |
| Labour Day | Monday 9 March | Monday 8 March |
| Good Friday | Friday 3 April | Friday 26 March |
| Saturday before Easter Sunday | Saturday 4 April | Saturday 27 March |
| Easter Sunday | Sunday 5 April | Sunday 28 March |
| Easter Monday | Monday 6 April | Monday 29 March |
| Anzac Day | Saturday 25 April | Sunday 25 April |
| Winter and spring | ||
| King’s Birthday | Monday 8 June | Monday 14 June |
| Friday before the AFL Grand Final | Friday 25 September | The Friday before the 2027 Grand Final |
| Melbourne Cup | Tuesday 3 November | Tuesday 2 November |
| Christmas | ||
| Christmas Day | Friday 25 December | Saturday 25 December, plus Monday 27 December |
| Boxing Day | Saturday 26 December, plus Monday 28 December | Sunday 26 December, plus Tuesday 28 December |
Dates from Business Victoria’s 2026 and 2027 holiday pages and its 2026 non-metropolitan list (last updated 3 August 2026), read October 2026. Daylight saving runs from 2am on Sunday 4 October 2026 to 3am on Sunday 4 April 2027, and your assistant follows it. We add the next dates as they’re announced.
After an outage, AusNet recommends licensed electricians who issue a Certificate of Electrical Safety, and it only reconnects an installation that meets the Service Installation Rules. Energy Safe Victoria tells customers to insist on that certificate when the job’s done.
Energy Safe licenses electricians and keeps public registers of licensed workers and electrical contractors. Plumbers and gasfitters are licensed by the Building and Plumbing Commission, which registers builders too.
Want your licence number given out when a customer asks? Text it to us and your assistant will have it.
A Traralgon roofer and a Morwell tiler want different calls texted to them in a storm. Each trade page shows where we start.
No storm surcharge. The plans go by how many people work in the business.
Sole traders on the tools
A$299a month
About A$9.83 a day. Plus A$299 setup, once. Month to month.
Talk to the humansA small crew
A$449a month
Plus A$499 setup, once. Month to month.
Talk to the humansA bigger team with more phones ringing
A$799a month
Plus A$499 setup, once. Month to month.
Talk to the humansGo over your minutes or texts and it keeps answering: A$0.49 a minute and A$0.25 a text. It’s month to month, because 12 months is a big commitment to make to a robot. That’s the whole price. Nothing gets added on top. Questions? Ring us on 0468 075 000 or email hello@offsitemate.com.au.
No, and nobody’s driving down the Princes Freeway to see you either. We’re in Wagga Wagga, NSW, and set everything up over the phone. Ring us on 0468 075 000 and a human answers.
No. Nights and public holidays cost the same as any other time, and calls come out of your monthly minutes. On the sole trader plan that’s 100 minutes, then A$0.49 a minute.
If you want it to. Text us what you’d like it to say about outages, trees and flooding, and we’ll add it. If someone’s in danger, it tells them to hang up and ring triple zero.
Yes. 03 is the landline code for most of Victoria, and the Numbering Plan gives the Morwell charging district (03) 51 numbers. Your number stays with your phone company and forwards to your assistant’s own Australian mobile number. Landlines and phone systems have their own forwarding steps, so ring us and we’ll work through it with your provider.
A$299 a month for a sole trader with 100 minutes and 150 texts, plus A$299 once to set up. It’s A$449 a month for 2 to 4 people and A$799 for 5 to 10. No GST added, month to month.
Ring us on the number below, or email. Either way, a human gets back to you.
0468 075 000Or email hello@offsitemate.com.au
