Australian supervised

 

 

ROYAL AUSTRALIAN AIR FORCE

 

The Royal Australian Air Force initially chose 4 abandoned tunnels near Sydney to house the weapons. Three of these, Marangaroo, Glenbrook and Clarence were on the old abandoned Great Western railway whereas Picton was on the old southern line.

 

Marangaroo tunnel

 

This tunnel was used to store chemical weapons in the form of bombs. Due to the Japanese threat, the administration area at Marangaroo (several kilometres from the tunnel) was designed to appear from the air as a small country town (known locally as Hoax town) to conceal the operations being undertaken. This included the mess and kitchen being disguised as “Ryans Hotel”. The RAAF inspected the disused tunnel on 30 April 1942 and began to use it from June 1942 onwards. The railway cuttings (a man-made trough or valley through a hill, carrying at its base a railway) immediately outside the tunnels was used to store the phosgene bombs in especially made sheds. Phogene is lethal and very difficult to detect by smell and therefore it could not be stored in a confined space (the tunnel). The tunnel was used to store mustard filled bombs.

 

 

 

 

Photo: Marangaroo – showing loading platform at one of the phosgene storage sheds. 250 lb light case bombs filled phosgene are visible. Mid 1943. © National Archives of Australia 7648137

 

Glenbrook tunnel

 

On 6 January 1942 the Air Board approved the take over of the disused 660 metre railway tunnel at Glenbrook, NSW by the RAAF for the storage of bombs with the acquisition occurring on 4 April 1942. A variety of ammunition types including chemical ammunition was stored over the years at this site. The chemical weapons mainly of bulk drums of mustard.

 

 

 

 

 

Photo: Glenbrook - view of camp area from the west end. Edge of combined kitchen/recreation hut to left. Sleeping tents to right. Mid 1943 © National Archives of Australia

 

Picton tunnel

 

On 4 December 1942, the Air Board approved the "suitability" of the Picton Tunnel for the storage of chemical warfare munitions. The tunnel was used to store mustard gas spray tanks of 250 and 500 lb sizes.

 

 

 

 

Photo: Smoke Curtain Installations mustard spray tanks from Picton tunnel await removal to Rozelle wharf at the end of the war. ©

 

 

Clarence tunnel

 

Clarence was the last tunnel to be taken over and was located in the area above Lithgow in the vicinity of the current tourist zig zag railway (which actually runs through it). It was used as a housing area for stocks that were shipped to No 19 Replenishing Centre.

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In July 1943 the Chemical Warfare Plan called for some of the weapons and bulk stocks to placed in forward areas so as to facilitate the supply of advanced operational units should retaliatory warfare action be later required. As the Japanese were in Papua New Guinea the forward areas needed to be in the north of Australia. Two sites were chosen, one in Queensland and one in the Northern Territory

 

Talmoi, No. 19 Replenishing Centre, Queensland

 

 

No. 19 Replenishing Centre was formed at Marangaroo, 30 October 1943. On 6 March 1944 the advanced party of the Replenishing Centre moved from Clarence to its new location at Talmoi and by 13 March 1944 the unit had occupied the new site. On 17 April 1944 the transfer of stocks commenced.

 

 

Photo: RAAF chemical warfare armourers from Talmoi chemical weapons storage depot (No. 19 Replenishing Centre) at Queensland on RAAF 3 ton flattop truck (number 213956). Left to right; Sol Lawrence, Bill Johnson, possibly Artie Baker?, Ron Watts, Norm Wilson, Ian Learmonth, Bob Langsford, Jimmy Gehrig (check spell), Reg Olive, Victor Hicks, Frank Burkin, driver (name unknown)

88 Mile

On 6 August 1943 an inspection of the wharf facilities at Darwin port for the suitability of handling chemical weapons material was undertaken. The transfer began on 23 March 1944 and was completed on 2 April 1944. The material was stored in open sheds with canvas sides to protect from the weather. As for the other storage areas the 44 gallon drums mustard were vented due to temperatures. There was one phosgene shed and several mustard.

 

 

 

 

Photo: 88 mile camp view. The lights were powered by a rotary hoe mower engine attached to a generator. The hoe had been ‘acquired’ after being discovered at a railway siding. Les Johnson a Chemical Warfare Armourer and the local electrician rigged a circuit in the trees using beer bottles as insulators. Lights went strictly off at 10 pm. (Jack Taylor)

 

Bowen, Chemical Research Unit, Queensland

 

The Chemical Research Unit constituted the Royal Australian Air Force contribution to the chemical warfare research facility at Innisfail and the Australia Field Experimental Station based at Proserpine.

 

ARMY

 

 

No. 1 Base Ammunition Depot (1 BAD), Albury, New South Wales

 

The first stocks of chemical weapons arrived from Williamstown (Victoria) in August 1942, presumably from the Nigerstrrom. The weapons were stored in open sided sheds in a line against a hill with the sheds approximately 400 metres apart. They are remembered to have had gravel floors.

 

 

United States Supervised

 

The United States forces based in Australia independently imported their own chemical weapons to Australia and stored them under their own supervision

Darra, Queensland

 

10 miles from the General Post Office, Brisbane. The principle US chemical munitions site in South Queensland.

 

Geelong, Victoria

 

20km NW of Geelong, the Kane Ammunition Depot which was established March 1942.

 

Charters Towers, Queensland

 

18 kms west of Charters Towers.

 

Columboola, Queensland

 

200 miles west of Brisbane, near Miles.

 

Kangaroo, Queensland

 

26 N of Townsville.

 

Kingswood, Sydney, New South Wales

 

50kms west of Sydney, currently used by RAAF (Orchard Hills)