75 YRS AGO THIS WEEK: Speaking of Pictures.
75 YRS AGO THIS WEEK: Speaking of Pictures... Men Go Under Ground to Live: A Look at British Bomb Shelters. http://bit.ly/1CNoD6y
"Thirty-six million Englishmen live in cities or towns where air raids are now a momentary danger. Sirens shriek at any hour of the day or night and even if enemy planes are sighted as soon as they reach the English coast, Londoners have only about ten minutes to reach air-raid shelters in safety. The outbreak of war found England with far too few public and private shelters. for low-income families (under 250 pounds) the Government has installed 1,150,000 family shelters, made of steel sections and half-buried in gardens and piled with sand. They are splinterproof against 500-lb. bombs 30 ft. away but are not secure from direct hits or from gas. Other citizens, factories, offices have built their own shelters, some quite elaborate."
#WorldWarII #WWII #1930s #London #England
Somewhat reminiscent of the "safe rooms" and tornado shelters being built and considered in both homes and schools in some areas. I remember civil defense shelters very well.
ReplyDeleteI find some of these accommodations very disturbing in design. An underground with one hatch, right next to a wall that could collapse. Another that apparently can be locked closed from the outside? Or residential multi-tubes all aligned in series, so to leave or come you have to go through everyone ease's quarters?
ReplyDeleteOshi Shikigami Interesting points, Oshi. Though I find it difficult to believe that manhole locks from the outside. It's a bit far fetched. Who would draw the straw to stay outside during an air raid and lock the cover. The tubes are for public shelters. So the sort of anthill mentality of "we're all in this together" makes sense. And I don' think the intent was to live in them for extended periods of time. Thanks for your comment!
ReplyDeleteJohn W Poynton, The photo with the locking door, is on the left side of the right page, with a square door. Notice the hinges on the left, and handle on the right side - along with what looks to be latching mechanisms?
ReplyDeleteOshi Shikigami I would hope you're incorrect. But keep in mind these are schematics. I think the scary part, from an historical perspective, is that there was a need for them to even exist.
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