World War II Installations on the Southeast Coast of Mauritius

Détail :

District : Grand-Port/Pointe du Diable
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Présentation :

n World War Two (WWII) the island of Mauritius, which had been a part of the British Empire since 1810, became an important base for the Royal Navy fleet in the Indian Ocean: first as a Royal Navy Air Station principally for hunting Japanese and German submarines, and also as a centre of communications. 1 A number of installations were constructed for coastal defence in the event of bombardment or attempted invasion as well as for the storage of fuel and ammunition. The financial burden and the cost in manpower to the small colony of Mauritius would have been substantial. No comprehensive record of these defensive structures, or of the military landscape exists, although there are some records scattered amongst various archives in Mauritius that have yet to be collected and collated. 2 Constructed 70 or so years ago most of these structures are now to a greater or lesser degree ruinous because the reinforced concrete from which they were largely constructed has degraded with time and, more seriously, has often split apart as iron reinforcement has corroded. Vegetation too has taken its toll as roots split walling apart. Modern development poses several threats. These include new National Coast Guard installations at Pointe Diable, both on the elevated nose of the ridge and at the foot, encroachment by garden agriculture, and the robbing of basalt blocks.