With swimming pools and sports fields: Finland has prepared a network of bomb shelters for almost a million people

The Finnish capital, Helsinki, has a massive network of underground shelters capable of accommodating nearly 1 million people in the event of a nuclear attack or other emergency. The shelters can be quickly converted for extended stays.

This is reported by the Daily Mail .

There are over 5,500 rock shelters under Helsinki, with a total capacity that exceeds the city’s population of about 675,000.

Finland began systematically building defensive structures after the Soviet invasion during the Winter War of 1939. Since 1954, the law has required the construction of bomb shelters under buildings with an area of more than 1,200 square meters.

One of the largest shelters is the Merihaka complex, built in 2003 at a depth of about 25 meters. Its volume is 71 thousand cubic meters, and its capacity is about 6 thousand people.

In peacetime, the complex is used as a sports space with a gym, children’s play area and other facilities. In the event of an emergency, it can be converted within 72 hours to include bunk beds, water tanks and portable toilets.

The main entrance to the shelter is equipped with two sets of armored doors. The first is designed to protect against a blast wave, the second – against chemical, biological and nuclear threats.

“If the situation becomes difficult, we may have to close the doors and leave people outside,” said Jukka-Pekka Schröderus, a spokesman for the city’s rescue service.

Helsinki also has 48 large shelters and thousands of smaller ones. In peacetime, they are used as:

• swimming pools;
• saunas;
• karting tracks;
• skate parks;
• churches;
• archery ranges;
• rehearsal rooms for music bands.

While in the shelter, only a third of the people will be sleeping at a time. The rest will be doing daily chores or taking turns.

There are no provisions for food supplies in shelters. Each resident should bring an emergency kit for at least 72 hours, which includes food, medicine, and portable chargers.

In total, about 50.5 thousand civilian shelters have been built in Finland. According to the publication, the country’s experience is of interest in Poland, Germany, the Middle East and Ukraine, and Finnish companies expect an increase in demand for technologies for the construction of protective structures.

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