Ahh Switzerland, a land of majestic mountains, pristine lakes, quaint chalets, chocolate, watches and . . . . . . . . . . .Bomb Shelters?!!!!  

My fellow correspondent tries on a genuine Swiss gas mask!

  Switzerland is Armed to The Teeth!

  I have lived in Switzerland since 1995 and one of the things that I slowly came to realize is that although very peaceful and neutral Switzerland is armed to the teeth!   

While most European countries have done away with obligatory military service, Swiss men must still serve. With 45.7 guns per 100 residents Switzerland has more guns per capita than Iraq and Lebanon, as it trails only the U.S. and Yemen! What do you think about that statistic? Does this surprise you?   

Since it hasn’t fought a war in over 500 years Switzerland has no nuclear weapons and no enemies. Despite these facts it maintains thousands of cavernous mountain fortifications to fend off an attack.  

  A Vast Network of Bomb Shelters  

  The reference page Nuclear War Survival Skills states: "Switzerland has the best civil defense system”.   

  Up until recently Swiss law required that every dwelling built in the country since 1968 must have a bomb shelter able to withstand a blast from a 50 megaton explosion at a distance of 700 meters. Just to give you a better idea, the bomb detonated 600 meters above Nagasaki at the end of WWII measured only 21 kilotons.   

  Building a shelter in a private house costs about SFr 10,000 ($10,300) but these days people having a house built are not obligated to include a shelter. If they do decide not to build one, they must instead pay their local government SFr 1,500 for each place in a shelter.  

This is the door to a shelter in a new condo complex that has 7 apartments! Check out the wrench to bolt the door shut!!!!!

I took this shot so that you can get an idea of the thickness of the steel and concrete door! Believe me it weighs so much that it's hard to close!

  

My Brother-In Law’s Bomb Shelter Looks Like a Bomb Already Went Off!  

My brother-in law kindly agreed to let me "tour" the shelter in his private home! Sorry about the quality of the pictures but his shelter was so stuffed with junk that I could hardly fit into it!

Clockwise from top left: 1.)He proudly shows me how to close the door 2.)the air filtration system (which was recently inspected and found to be in good working order) 3+4.) a view inside shows the bomb shelter doubles as a JUNK room!

  So How Many Bomb Shelters Are There In Switzerland?

  As of 2011 Switzerland had more than 300,000 bunkers, enough to shelter all 7.6 million Swiss with one million places to spare! The total value of the shelters is put at SFr 11.8 billion (about $ 12.15 billion).   

As you can see from the pictures of my brother-in law’s shelter people are allowed to use the shelters for other purposes such as storage. They must however have it regularly inspected and the door and air filtration system must be kept in good working order!  

So there you have it, The Curious Case Of The Swiss Bomb Shelters! I hope that you enjoyed this little tour and that you have gained insight into some unusual facts about this fascinating country!

Until next time,     

@kus-knee (The Old Dog)