Underground bunkers are booming again in Europe
For decades, bunkers were largely ignored – but now, interest is surging, particularly among private citizens, according to companies that specialise in building or restoring shelters.
In Spain, for example, the private construction of bunkers has increased by 200% since Moscow launched its war in early 2022, industry companies report.
Countries like Germany, France and the Baltic states are reportedly among the most advanced in their preparedness.
Boom in demand
Companies specialising in the construction of private shelters or the reactivation of old bunkers in Germany are seeing an increase in demand.
At Bunker Schutzraum Systeme Deutschland (BSSD), an employee describes an 'exponential' increase in inquiries since 2014 – a trend that accelerated again in 2022 following the war in Ukraine, though still on a relatively modest scale.
The clientele is made up entirely of private individuals.
'Nothing is being done by the government,' says Mario Piejde, the company's technical director and spokesperson.
'People are slowly waking up and taking matters into their own hands – not just because of the fear of war, but also concerns about power outages or civil unrest.'
According to BSSD, 80% of current projects involve refurbishing older, privately owned bunkers, while 20% consist of converting basements in new residential buildings into protective shelters.
At another firm, the Deutsches Schutzraum-Zentrum (DSZ), the trend skews in the opposite direction.
Owner Peter Aurnhammer reports that 80% of their work involves new builds, where part of the basement is specifically designed as a secure shelter.
Interest is growing across all demographics, he adds.
'We see demand from all corners of society – tradespeople, doctors, politicians, business owners and families planning new homes with integrated shelter space.'
Music, art and carnival
Today, the high-rise bunkers in Frankfurt are mainly used for civilian purposes – even if they are not as spectacular as the St Pauli bunker in Hamburg, a massive World War II shelter turned plant-covered hotel and tourist magnet.
Some are used as rehearsal rooms for musicians or studios for artists. Others became clubhouses, youth centres or carnival clubs.
Companies that already existed during World War II still have bunkers from this period – one example can be found on the site of an industrial company in Frankfurt's Ostend district.
The operators do not want the exact location to be publicised for fear of uninvited visitors. Today, the rooms are used as storage space or are empty.
Squeaky iron doors located 12m below an industrial plant near Frankfurt. — BORIS ROESSLER/dpa
Secret cellar
From the outside, only the worn inscription 'luftschutzraum' (air-raid shelter) on a cellar grating indicates the existence of the facility.
The path leads through a security door that can only be opened with a coded key card. Past clattering machines and the grinding noises of a conveyor belt, worn concrete steps lead into a labyrinth of corridors and windowless rooms that are not accessible to the public.
An arched iron door squeaks open 12m underground. In the light of a torch, the words 'shelter for 45 people' written in German can be seen in Gothic script on the weathered paintwork of the door.
The room is completely empty – but during the heavy airstrikes on Frankfurt in 1943 and 1944, dozens of people were crammed into a very small space.
A few metres further on, the door to the former 'command post' stands ajar. Apart from a few coat hooks, there are no longer any personal belongings or parts of the interior fittings of the time.
The existence of separate toilets and showers for men and women suggests that stays could last several days.
Non-contemporary approach
According to the Federal Office of Civil Protection and Disaster Assistance (BBK), Germany currently still maintains 579 public shelters with a total capacity of around 478,000 people.
However, in 2006, the government decided to gradually decommission shelters and repurpose them for other uses.
As a result, the nationwide provision of public shelters for defence purposes is no longer included in Germany's current civil defence strategy.
The BBK emphasises that times have changed: 'For a long time, the construction and maintenance of public shelters was seen by the public as a central civil defence measure,' said a spokeswoman.
However, even during the Cold War, a maximum of 2% of the population could have found refuge in public shelters. The threat scenarios then and now are not comparable, she added.
'Against this background, new ways of protecting the population must also be pursued. A nationwide construction of shelters is therefore not a modern approach to ensure effective protection of the population.'
Stocking up
Russia's invasion of Ukraine has brought new challenges for civil defence across Europe, according to Roman Poseck, interior minister of the German state of Hesse.
He emphasises that citizens can help bolster societal resilience by maintaining basic emergency supplies – such as food, water, a flashlight, spare batteries and a battery-powered radio.
'The security situation has fundamentally changed for all European countries.' – dpa
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