Construction of Fallout Shelters

During the construction of fallout shelters we pay special attention to:

We also offer:


The future will be what we make it to be. While sufficient preparation for less severe floods or events of similar scope may take several days or weeks, preparation for a world war involves completely different time scales. We hold the view that it is already too late to be able to prevent a world conflict (more information is in the article What Lies Ahead in 2011 and 2012 and in the chapters World Developments and News). Since it is evidently no longer possible to avoid the conflict, the least we can do is reasonably prepare for it.

How does one prepare for such a conflict? Let’s start simply. The basic pillar is proper knowledge about protection against weapons of mass destruction (WMD). Thanks to them we can, with a bit of luck, for a long period of time improvise and cope safely even in such conditions where people without this knowledge had either very little or no hope of survival. This knowledge can be acquired in our specialized course (Protection against WMD, Protection against Nuclear Weapons and Special Training against WMD). However, in the event of a more extensive nuclear, chemical, biological or toxin attack it might be rather difficult to manage without the appropriate protective equipment and without the proper background. By background we mean a suitable shelter containing a sufficient amount of supplies, a safe place to rest, a place where access to clean air is provided by filtration/ventilation equipment with special filters… Preferably, existing subterranean spaces can be used to build such a shelter – this would be mainly an improvised shelter. An alternative would be our own specially built shelter of the type usually referred to as a fallout shelter. We should not forget that we need to ensure permanent access to a sufficient amount of drinking water. For this purpose it is advisable to use, for example, portable special equipment for the preparation of drinking water.

Prior to design and construction, calculations will be made to serve as a basis for the proposal of a suitable type of fallout shelter (underground, partially buried or above ground). To be able to make these calculations, it is necessary to know what important targets presenting a large risk of nuclear weapons being used to destroy or at least significantly damage them are located in your region, and their distance from the planned site of the shelter. Such targets may include airports (also those that are out of use), chemical plants, large factories, dams, large traffic junctions, towns with populations of more than approximately 100,000, military facilities, fuel reservoirs, oil refineries, power plants, ammunition depots, radar stations, ports, missile silos, etc. These targets then need to be carefully selected and thoroughly assessed to identify likely candidates for an eventual nuclear attack. Knowledge of such facilities and of the precise location of the planned shelter will allow us to calculate the required resistance of the shelter with regard to possible seismic effects (horizontal and vertical ground motion caused by an underground, surface or low air nuclear burst), gamma radiation from possible fallout, overpressure at the shock front and also possible initial radiation. The construction of the shelters also depends on customer requirements, i.e. the number of sheltered persons, the size… If the customer decides to have our manual filter-ventilation device placed inside the shelter, we will also calculate the number of filters needed for any length of time to be spent in the shelter. We will also recommend the minimal number of filters that need to be readily available in the shelter.

As we can see, it is not appropriate to use a unified fallout shelter design for all locations. The construction of a highly resistant shelter in a region where the destructive factors of a nuclear burst could be expected to be weaker would be uneconomical. On the other hand, the construction of some kind of less resistant, but significantly cheaper shelter closer to the epicenter of the nuclear burst would sometimes almost certainly be suicidal. Even if the structure of such a shelter held out, the people inside might have problems in the form of broken limbs, pelvic bones, or even the vertebral column. Shelters in such areas therefore require certain adjustments to avoid casualties among the sheltered persons. The closer to the epicenter of a nuclear burst shelter is, the more resistant should be, and thus is more expensive. The price cannot be set in a simple way as it depends on many circumstances. To give a rough idea, the stated price of a basic construction can be in the range of 900,000 Czech crowns (50,000 $), but it usually is higher.

We should understand that a fallout shelter is not just a family home dug in the ground, with all the amenities we have normally been used to. When it comes to certain amenities, it will be necessary to do without some luxuries for safety reasons. It is advisable to use equipment which is above all safe, practical and resistant. Depending on what the customer requires, we can supply partial or complete shelter equipment, including the necessary wiring, etc. If any of the shelter equipment requested by the customer presents a possible threat to his health or life, we point this fact out and recommend a safer option.

As our shelters are designed for long-term sheltering, we emphasize the need for the largest possible storing space (doubled floor) for food, water, tools, clothing, fuel, accumulators, …, and the best possible utilization of space. This approach will also contribute to the required comfort and allow for an adequate degree of privacy in case of sheltering, which will alleviate cabin fever. Cabin fever affects people who are isolated from the outside world for a longer period of time. The behavior of isolated individuals is affected by the large psychological burden and they can then act in sometimes unexpected ways. Sometimes certain individuals who have a need to assert their importance resort to bullying others.

A standard feature of each independent cell is an escape hatch allowing safe evacuation in circumstances when, for whatever reason, it is not possible to jack open the main entrance. All inlet and outlet holes are guarded by protective elements against both the blast wave, and vandals.

At the customer’s request, the surrounding area may be adjusted to make the shelter blend in with the surroundings. The price of camouflaging the shelter depends on the amount of work that needs to be done. We also offer a facility for monitoring the surroundings without having to leave the shelter.

Besides atomic shelters, we can also design and make shelters with a higher seismic resistance of roughly up to an 8.5 on the Richter scale. These very robust shelters are usually more expensive then fallout shelters.

We also offer the construction of larger underground complexes, suitable especially in cases when more than one family decides to shelter together. Compared to the construction of private fallout shelters, the cost of sheltering per family is lower and the money thus saved can be invested, for example, into the shelter facilities. Such underground shelter complexes may consist of either a one-storey or multi-storey structure, or of independent shelters joined by a system of corridors. These shelters, too, can be constructed to resist increased seismic activity. It should be pointed out that besides considerable savings the construction of such complexes also offers the benefit of self-sufficiency of the sheltered community.

The construction of shelters is started according to a waiting list and is of course based on a contractual relationship. Before signing the contract, the customer will get a draft contract, which he can either read by himself, or consult with his lawyers. He can study the draft as long as he wishes. Payment is executed by bank transfer on the basis of pro forma invoices. We would just like to add that the price of our shelters is derived from the amount of work done, not the wealth of the customer.

Probable completion date of shelters construction: June–July 2012 (Middle East – June 2012).TOPlist