WW11 Oil Storage Tunnels

I found this very interesting reading all the history of WW11 in and around Darwin.

The WWII Oil Storage Tunnels were built during World War II to protect the oil stored in Darwin from Japanese bombing. Located below the cliffs of Darwin City in the Darwin Wharf Precinct on Kitchener Drive, a part of the Waterfront Precinct. By the time the tunnels were completed the risk from bombing had gone and the tunnels never stored oil.

Construction of the tunnels was part of an overall defence strategy for Australia and the Pacific region. In 1943 contractors Johns and Waygood commenced building the storage tunnels, finishing number 11 in 1946 after war's end. Difficulties and delays in construction, material deficiencies and the inability to effectively seal the tunnels from infiltration of water meant that the tunnels were never used for their intended purpose.Read more