LVT-4 Buffalo, Kotem - Maasmechelen

Under the highway bridge in the Belgian town Maasmechelen is an LVT-4 Buffalo, recovered from the river Maas.

A bit off topic, but I could not resist since it is in the neighbourhood.

At this location the British secretly exercised for crossing the river Rhine with these vehicles. During a night exercise 05-03-1945, when climbing out of the water, the engine stalled. Then the tank slit back into the river, where it struck an underwater object which tore the bottom of the tank open. Water came flooding in and after a while it sank. Two soldiers lost their lives in the accident.
In 1977 Belgian military divers discovered the wreck in the preparation research for building the highway bridge.
The wreck was then salvaged and placed under the bridge

In 2007 The tank was restored for a second time.

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01 - Before the 2007 restoration

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04 - After the 2007 restoration

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12 - The tank's history (in Dutch)
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