Mount Isa Underground Hospital
The Mount Isa Underground Hospital is full of history with no history to tell.
Located on the Mount Isa Base Hospital grounds is the Underground Hospital. It houses a selection of antique medical equipment and other ward paraphenalia, and is set up exactly the way it was when first completed in the middle of 1942.
Why does Mount Isa have an underground hospital? It's all because of the bombing of Darwin by the Japanese in February 1942. It was a concern that the Japanese may come further south and bomb Mount Isa, specifically the hospital as it was the next largest hospital outside of Darwin (along with Alice Springs), and given Mount Isa's infrastructure with the mining industry, there was much apprehension that this would make the town site a target.
To ensure the safety and well being of the residents, it was decided an underground hospital would be a necessity.
Using volunteer miners from Mount Isa Mines, the hospital was dug out in a matter of weeks, with the volunteers working 24/7 to get the job done. It was shored up using braces made from the trunks of the gidgee tree that is plenty in this area. This wood is hard and durable, and to this day, still standing and supporting the hospital roof. To help reduce the dust from the bare rock and earth walls, it is thought that sump oil was sprayed throughout.
After completion, the hospital was fully equipped with a Labour and Maternity ward combined with Ladies quarters in one tunnel, the second tunnel was for male patients and the third tunnel was a storage facility. The hospital was fully stocked for any emergency, including all the necessary equipment, sterilisation requirements, medicine and bedding.
Despite all the preparation, it was never used in an emergency. It was however used once a week during Emergency or Evacuation Exercises, to ensure all staff were ready for anything. This meant a siren would sound, and all patients (regardless of condition) and staff would move to the underground hospital to continue treatment.
These exercises continued for a couple of years, until the threat abated. After that it was used at nighttimes for new mothers and their babies to find some respite during the hot summer nights; as well as nurses using it for the same purpose.
Some time during the 1950's, when the threat had abated, the entrances of the underground hospital were closed in, and consequently the hospital was forgotten about for sometime. It was rediscovered in the late 1970's, when hospital workers were trying to ascertain the reason for the subsidence in the hill at the rear of the hospital. By this time the hospital was in a bad shape, in time and with some considerable effort by many, the hospital was cleared up, and with the photos that were taken at the completion of the hospital in 1942, the Underground Hospital was once again fitted out to its former glory - this time for residents and tourists alike to marvel at the sheer determination and dedication of a community fearing attack.
You will find alot of native medicinal plant signs along the path to the hospital. Due to the prolonged drought we have had in the area, these plants have sadly not survived, however I am sure they will all be replaced in time.
The National Trust Tent House, Museum and Underground Hospital are open during the cooler months of the year (April to September) and run by a dedicated team of Volunteers, it really is worth a visit, whether you are a traveller to town or local.
{National Trust Tent House blog can be found here}
{Beth Anderson Museum blog can be found here}
Located on the Mount Isa Base Hospital grounds is the Underground Hospital. It houses a selection of antique medical equipment and other ward paraphenalia, and is set up exactly the way it was when first completed in the middle of 1942.
Why does Mount Isa have an underground hospital? It's all because of the bombing of Darwin by the Japanese in February 1942. It was a concern that the Japanese may come further south and bomb Mount Isa, specifically the hospital as it was the next largest hospital outside of Darwin (along with Alice Springs), and given Mount Isa's infrastructure with the mining industry, there was much apprehension that this would make the town site a target.
To ensure the safety and well being of the residents, it was decided an underground hospital would be a necessity.
Using volunteer miners from Mount Isa Mines, the hospital was dug out in a matter of weeks, with the volunteers working 24/7 to get the job done. It was shored up using braces made from the trunks of the gidgee tree that is plenty in this area. This wood is hard and durable, and to this day, still standing and supporting the hospital roof. To help reduce the dust from the bare rock and earth walls, it is thought that sump oil was sprayed throughout.
After completion, the hospital was fully equipped with a Labour and Maternity ward combined with Ladies quarters in one tunnel, the second tunnel was for male patients and the third tunnel was a storage facility. The hospital was fully stocked for any emergency, including all the necessary equipment, sterilisation requirements, medicine and bedding.
Despite all the preparation, it was never used in an emergency. It was however used once a week during Emergency or Evacuation Exercises, to ensure all staff were ready for anything. This meant a siren would sound, and all patients (regardless of condition) and staff would move to the underground hospital to continue treatment.
These exercises continued for a couple of years, until the threat abated. After that it was used at nighttimes for new mothers and their babies to find some respite during the hot summer nights; as well as nurses using it for the same purpose.
Some time during the 1950's, when the threat had abated, the entrances of the underground hospital were closed in, and consequently the hospital was forgotten about for sometime. It was rediscovered in the late 1970's, when hospital workers were trying to ascertain the reason for the subsidence in the hill at the rear of the hospital. By this time the hospital was in a bad shape, in time and with some considerable effort by many, the hospital was cleared up, and with the photos that were taken at the completion of the hospital in 1942, the Underground Hospital was once again fitted out to its former glory - this time for residents and tourists alike to marvel at the sheer determination and dedication of a community fearing attack.
You will find alot of native medicinal plant signs along the path to the hospital. Due to the prolonged drought we have had in the area, these plants have sadly not survived, however I am sure they will all be replaced in time.
The National Trust Tent House, Museum and Underground Hospital are open during the cooler months of the year (April to September) and run by a dedicated team of Volunteers, it really is worth a visit, whether you are a traveller to town or local.
{National Trust Tent House blog can be found here}
{Beth Anderson Museum blog can be found here}
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| The Maternity, Ladies and Children's Ward Entrance |
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| The Labour Ward |
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| The Men's Ward |
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| The Nursery & Children's Ward, with an original photo from the completion of the Hospital to show exactly how the ward looked. |
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| Gelignite boxes were used as storage space throughout |
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| A recessed medicine cabinet that was discovered during the excavations |
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| The flow through section - which doubles as an escape route if the tunnels were to ever become blocked |
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| The Men's ward from the tunnel entrance |
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| Some interesting information on the uses of the termite mound. |
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| The Desert Bloodwood - the gum can be heated to make a glue that will set like concrete. The gum can also be boiled in water and used to wash sores, or added to honey to help with stomach complaints. |
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| Desert Bloodwood Tree |
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