Drone discovers 'lost' WWII tunnel under Macquarie Lighthouse

A 'lost' WWII era-tunnel in Sydney harbour has been rediscovered with the help of drone technology.

In November, the Macquarie Lighthouse in the Sydney suburb of Vaucluse will celebrate 200 years since its construction. As part of planned celebrations to mark the occasion, researchers from Macquarie University were approached by the Sydney Harbour Trust to create a digital map of the lighthouse and surrounding areas. 

Speaking to news.com.au, the university’s senior learning designer, Michael Rampe, says he learnt of the hidden tunnel during a planning meeting with the Trust in May.

“During this meeting they told us they had heard about an emplacement on the cliff but that very little was known about it,” Mr Rampe said.

“The Trust didn’t even know where the entrance was and asked us if there was anything we could do to help find it”.

With no obvious entrance at ground level, the tunnel was known to very few people. It was believed to have been built in World War II and forgotten for decades.

The university team took 3D scans of the lighhouse, and in a series of drone flights were able to locate the tunnel’s entrance.

“The first day we went was very windy but we managed to find the entrance and get some good images.”

On day two the team were able to get close-up imagery of the tunnel as well as the rest of the cliffside.

It is generally thought the tunnel was constructed in the 1940s, however the team have also received anecdotal evidence suggesting they may in fact be much older.

“Just today, someone called us to say they remembered their grandmother visiting the tunnels there back in 1919, which predates the Second World War,” he said.

“It may well have been built earlier and repurposed later on”.

The team from Macquarie University plan to unveil the results of their 3D mapping project and their findings during the 200th anniversary celebrations in November.