Cold War Private Underground Nuclear Shelter

Cold War Private Underground Nuclear Shelter

This nuclear fallout shelter was designed and built by a private individual in 1982. It is constructed from reinforced concrete, steel, brick, polythene and timber panelling.

From the outside, the shelter appears as a leaf and bluebell-covered mound approximately 14 metres long and 4 metres wide, with earth cover over the structure said to be about 2.5 metres deep. The only visible structural elements are four small metal cylindrical vents rising about a foot above ground level, and the entrance—a steel door set below ground level and shielded to the left by a concrete structure nearly 1 metre wide and about 1 metre deep, which slopes outward beside the steps leading down to the entrance. The roof is corrugated iron, largely concealed beneath evergreen shrubs that frame the entrance. Outside the entrance is a square concrete slab set into the ground.

Below ground, the outer walls of the shelter consist of a layer of polythene followed by shuttered reinforced concrete, which is followed by more polythene, and finally the interior wall panelling. The roof structure comprises reinforced steel joists supporting steel rods with steel mesh laid on top. Above the steel structure is concrete to a depth of about 0.40 metres, with earth above.

Concrete steps lead down from the entrance to a corridor situated 1 metre below ground level. The corridor has concrete block walls, but the lower part consists of shuttered concrete with a corrugated edge that projects forward slightly to the right. To the left it forms a wide shelf holding a generator contemporary with the shelter's construction. At the end of this corridor, a pair of timber doors opens into a second corridor containing a boiler that heats water for a spa bath in the main room. This corridor is also lined with concrete blocks and slopes down to a further set of double doors with metal kick plates and hand plates. Just before the threshold is a removable section of flooring—a narrow board the width of the corridor—which lifts to reveal a trench containing a metal top-opening safe at one end. The rest of the trench holds removable sand and gravelly earth to create a soakaway toilet. Another area of soil and sand near the entrance was provided to allow water to soak away in the event of flooding. The depth of concrete to the floor here is about 0.20 metres, becoming deeper in the main room.

The main room is a rectangular space lined with unpainted plywood and lit by strip lighting. The floor is carpeted, laid over tiles above scree, with the carpet rising up the side of the spa bath, which occupies the entire width of the far end of the room. Plywood panels surrounding the spa bath are removable to allow access to water pipes and controls, while a well-padded two-part cover provides a sleeping platform. Additional bunks would have been located in the space outside the main room. Just to the right of the entrance is a kitchen sink unit with a matching wall cupboard unit above. Next to the kitchen units is gym equipment for exercise during confinement, comprising wall bars and a wide plank. Approximately at the centre of this wall, close to the wall bars, is a gas fire.