There has been a lot of talk around the impending apocalypse lately. With the majority of the world’s population forced into lockdown, we’re faced with the ‘new normal’ of remaining indoors, buying in bulk, and confronting our own cabin fever-induced madness.
Each of these things are synonymous with popular depictions of the world’s end. Since that seems to be a bit of a theme at the moment, we thought we’d explore modern history’s best demonstrations of ‘bunkering down’ in the face of a cataclysmic event. Perhaps expectedly, the Cold War era has produced the goods.
This $30 million bomb shelter was built during the Cold War era. It adds a whole new level to the term ‘self-isolation.’
During The Cold War, an estimated 200,000 bomb shelters were built throughout suburban USA. A period of intense fear for an impending nuclear war resulted in widespread preparation for the worst. As a result, people went to incredible lengths in attempting to create nuclear shelters that were both safe and stylish (often failing miserably).
Entrepreneur Girard Henderson was perhaps the most committed, consistently promoting the idea of an underground lifestyle to the American public. In the 1970s, he constructed his doomsday masterpiece in Las Vegas.
This underground house lies 26 feet below the earth’s surface and occupies nearly 15,000 square feet. It also features a spacious ‘backyard,’ six bathrooms and a jacuzzi. Worth almost $30 million Australian, the bunker is flush with ’70s-inspired decor and is, frankly, kind of hideous.
Thankfully, the coronavirus hasn’t spurred people into building their own extravagant dens. Not yet, at least.
You can check out more photos of the nuclear bomb shelter below.
