Tank Hard

Tank Hard is a tank hard with an apron constructed in June 1944 by the Artesian Works Company for the 79th Armoured Division. It is made of cast concrete and concrete panels, with some iron fittings, iron beams, and timber sleepers.

The apron platform is a level concrete surface at the top of the riverbank, running parallel to the river in a north/south direction, and serves as a hardstanding. It consists of two adjoining sections, one measuring 31 meters by 3 meters and the other measuring 31 meters by 3.1 meters. At the front edge, there are two 7.3-meter iron railway beams set 6 meters apart. Embedded in the concrete at the south end of each beam are seven equally spaced iron bars arranged radially to form a quadrant, which aids the traction of tank vehicles and helps prevent damage to the concrete during turning maneuvers. Behind the hardstanding, there are two approximately 1.3-meter square sunken anchor blocks with iron loops and rings for mooring landing craft or hauling heavy equipment and vehicles.

A second concrete tank hard slopes down to the river from the iron beams at a 15-degree angle. It is believed to measure 2 meters from front to back and is 20.5 meters wide in two sections. Damage at each end suggests it was originally wider, possibly 31 meters to match the sections on land. Below this platform, approximately 175 railway sleepers are laid at right angles, although several above the low water mark are thought to have decayed. The recorded arrangement includes 43 sleepers across the width of the ramp and four or five from top to bottom. The sleepers are bedded on concrete ‘chocolate blocks,’ fixed with screws and rods, measuring 0.3 meters wide and 0.15 meters deep, with various lengths. Below the sleepers is another concrete platform of unknown dimensions.