LNOYL

Canada built cold war nuclear fall out bunkers in the 50′s and 60′s. Last weekend, we just realized that we lived twenty minutes away from one of them. So Dareck, Jen and I decided to visit our local fallout shelter – the “Diefenbunker”.

It would be great to film a video in there, maybe for dedicated to the national trust

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Before you hit the innermost layer, you find mid century modern inspired design all over the place. The basement is bleak, and there are mixed messages to be found within all the multiple use transformations the building has gone through. I wonder what Kim Jong-il’s bunker looks like. Probably something like this (click any picture to enlarge/view gallery):

Just outside the gates…

Decent into the bunker

DND commander chair. Notice the ashtray. In the 60′s, you filter your recycled air for nuclear fallout while filling it with smoke all at the same time.

Agent des operations got to work at the sturdy tank of a desk, while sitting in his government issue, stylish Eames inspired chair. Utility meets function meets fashion in the nuclear age.

Alarms in the belly of the beast.

“Area 2″ mid century inspired bunker arrangements.

Doomsday conference room. I sat in the command chair. Dareck said that I wasn’t supposed to. I said if Obama could, then so could I.

The shower walls were yellow, and the overhead bulb also contributed to the yellowish haze. At first I thought it was your typical “boy bathroom” (I don’t think they let girls in back then, unless they were secretaries probably), until I realized that it was lined with lead paint.

The commander got a single issue DND bed. The family had to stay home. Good thing he had the rotary dial phone to check up on them after the blast.

Bedside Canadian made Eames inspired chair.

DND issued blanket to keep oh so warm in the isolated underground.

Descent again…

Colour coordinated cabinets to lift the spirits…

…while you are determining fallout calculations…

Adjacent to fallout man sits the scientific advisor.

Eames inspired shell chairs supply the only colour in the room…

Reels of tape & the mainframe computer.

There were many computers in central command. BULL DPS stand for “bullshit digital processing systems” – the perfect computational algorithm for when the nuclear shit hits the fan.

In the eighties, Canada’s nuclear bunker upgraded to floppy disks (Im sure it costs thousands of dollars to add megs of storage). It was either that, or they’re for playing muzak cassette tapes.

Blast detector!

The ruler says “emergency measures”…Get it? Har har har.

Isn’t a nuclear blast suppose to change weather and wind directions and all that? I guess that is what this is for…

When a button is pushed and that light goes on, the emergency studio takes over the signal and broadcasts to every radio station in the country.

Descent.

The cafeteria, complete with modernist table seating. The picture in the background was a huge nature montage – to combat depression.

Eames inspired Area 2.

The innermost layer. There is a huge mirror before you enter the treasury. It’s like the 2001 space odyssey monolith.

Where the gold was kept…

Keep them out or in?

Blast siren