Iris hut
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Iris hut is a prefabricated steel structure used by the British military predominantly during the early part of the Second World War. They served as barracks, workshops, and storage facilities in World War II Great Britain.
Iris huts were also used as accommodation in the tunnels of Gibraltar, where they were situated in chambers excavated under the Rock of Gibraltar.[1]
An Iris hut is constructed of a clamped tubular steel frame with a central entrance.[2]
The hut's mode of construction and dimensions are similar to those of the Romney hut, as was its purpose. Both were used to accommodate facilities for which abnormal roof spans were required.[3] On some airfields, two or more Romney or Iris huts would be erected to accommodate large stores and workshops.[4] However, the Iris hut had a major design flaw: it was unable to resist the weight of snow lying on the roof and had a tendency to collapse after snowfalls. For this reason, it was superseded by the Romney hut by 1941.[5]
