Bunker BV 1 Jevoumont

This is the 1st bunker (BV 1) from the sector Becco-Vesdre, and is located next to a forest path in a forest plot between the villages of Becco and Spixe.

The sector BV is part of the 1st defense line for the stat Liege, La Position Fortifiée de Liège, PFL 1 and belonged to the line of Fort Tancrémont. Interestingly, therefore, this bunker does not belong to the Sougné-Becco sector given its location. It is located in line with the bunkers of this sector, in the vicinity of bunker SB G and SB 11.

The bunker is partially overgrown. The gun opening lies to the north in the direction of Theux. The bunker is accessible and in good condition. The walls of the bunker are 1.3 meters thick on all sides, of reinforced concrete. Around the bunker there are still part of the original fence posts with barbed wire to mark the military plot.

The original plank supports and hooks are still present as well as part of the machine gun mount. Over this mount, the machine gun could be moved left and right.

The bunker has no ventilation holes that are present in most bunkers above the gun opening. When the machingun was fired, the room would be full of smoke gases, which was intoxicating to the soldiers present. Ventilation at this type of bunker will then be through the access doors. This will have been in this bunker the lamella door (for an example of such a door see bunker SB 9, which was air permeable. The inside of the lamella door was partially covered with a steel plate. The outer door also was ventilated, a small window with hatch was present.

The hooks on the wall were for hanging equipment. The shelf supports were meant to put away materials so one could not trip over them. It should be remembered that these (and most bunkers) were not connected to the electricity grid. A storm lamp could be hung from the ceiling, on a hook provided for that purpose. This was the only lighting.

As with most bunkers, after the war when the bunkers had lost their strategic value, the metal shutters and doors were removed and sold as scrap metal. It also happened that during the war the bunkers were stripped of iron by the Germans and melted down for other purposes. If cast iron observation turrets were present, they were reused at the atlantikwal, among others (This bunker did not have an observation turret).

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Source

• Text: Ed Lewandowski
• Photos: Ed Lewandowski