Pillbox 014, Brick Hill / Deep Water bay [1939- ]

Looks like I gave up too easily. Andrew wrote in:

PB14 is [near the round blue objects in the top photograph]. Its gun slits are just above the ground level and I was able to see inside a year or so ago. The Lyon light shelter is up an overgrown flight of steps to the left of the pill box and it is well worth visiting.

Following Andrew's messages thatthe pillbox was still there, I went back for another look. Sure enough, it was very close to the newer concrete slab noted above, but a little bit before it if you are walking over from the Mills & Chung path.

Here's the first view. Can you see it? You should be able to see the slit of the loophole in the centre of the photo.

Here's a closer look. I don't feel so bad about missing it the first time! The pillbox has been covered and partially buried with assorted rubbish and earth from the hillside above.

Getting closer to the left loophole, we can see the rubbish goes inside as well.

Here's the view looking out the other way. The pillbox looks along the shoreline from here to DeepWater Bay Road, then on to the Deepwater Bay beach.

The left edge of the pillbox is unusual. The roof forms an overhang, but then there is a second concrete wallfrom the edge of the roof to the ground. There is a gap between the two walls, but it is too narrow to be a passage. I wonder what it was there for?

If you look up the slope on the left, you'll see a concrete staircase. Up we go!

Looking across from the stairs, we can see a small square ventilation 'chimney' on top of the pillbox. For some reason this pillbox didn't get the round structure for a periscope [2020 update: the round structure on the roof of pillboxes wasn't a periscope] that is common on most other pillboxes.

At the top of the staircase we can see the Lyon Light building. The curved front aperture has been crudely filled in with stones and cement. No doubt it was used as a squatter's home at some stage after the war.

Closer up, there's the remains of a pipe poking through the wall next to the door. Was this one of the speaking tubes that Rob described, used to communicate with the pillbox?

Looking in through the door, and the rusty wall-fittings for the two fold-up beds can still be seen.

Looking round further to the left and you can see the remains of a much newer bed - someone had a mattress on the floor here in recent years.

Then turning round a bit further, the curve of the original opening is clear to see.

As I left, I held my camera down into the right loophole of the pillbox, to take a photo of the inside.

You can see the entrance is at the back, on the right, and that sand and rocks have fallen in from the right side.

Here's the front, right corner of the pillbox. The whole right side is completely buried now - no sign of any entrance.

As always, if you can add any more information about this pillbox, please let us know in the comments below.

MrB

Thanks to Rob Weir for finding PB14 in the first place. I understand it was his directions that Andrew followed, and then passed on to us.

And a bit of trivia - if you are a regular visitor to Tony Banham's website, he notes that the photo of the gun port at the top left of the page is PB14.