Northern Ireland is selling a heavily fortified secret nuclear bunker that dates back to the latter stages of the Cold War. If you have a spare half a million pounds or so, you could be the owner of the nuclear fallout shelter – never used, excellent condition. Construction began in 1987 and it was completed in 1990, just after the fall of the Berlin Wall when the Soviet Union was beginning to dissolve. Its existence was a state secret until 2007.
The discreet facility is buried within a mound of earth on an anonymous industrial estate on the outskirts of Ballymena, County Antrim. Protected by three air-tight blast doors and one-metre-thick concrete walls, the shelter contains dormitories, kitchen facilities, an emergency BBC broadcast studio and decontamination chambers. In the event of a nuclear attack, the shelter could house 235 VIPs and support staff for 30 days. The unusual property is on sale for around £575,000. Potential buyers might like to know that it comes with all original fixtures and fittings, including tins of long-life processed food. Here, IBTimes UK takes you on a guided tour of the bunker.
'For Sale' sign outside the nuclear bunker on the outskirts of BallymenaPaul Faith/AFPThe entrance to the former Regional Government HQ Nuclear bunker, built by the British government during the Cold War, on the outskirts of BallymenaClodagh Kilcoyne/ReutersThe main entrance and blast door of the nuclear bunkerCharles McQuillan/GettyThe main blast door is closed from the inside of the nuclear bunkerCharles McQuillan/GettyA map on a wall in a lounge areaClodagh Kilcoyne/ReutersThe main conference roomCharles McQuillan/GettyThe main power generator, required to sustain human life once the bunker is sealedCharles McQuillan/GettyControl panels in the generator roomClodagh Kilcoyne/ReutersA crate containing radioactive survey meters (radiation detectors)Charles McQuillan/GettyThe main communications roomCharles McQuillan/GettyA broken clock hanging on the wall of the main communications roomCharles McQuillan/GettyEmergency BBC broadcasting studioCharles McQuillan/GettyA folder and control panel in the emergency BBC broadcasting studioClodagh Kilcoyne/ReutersOld recordable mediaClodagh Kilcoyne/ReutersA computer and storage media in the operations roomClodagh Kilcoyne/ReutersAn artificial tree at the bottom of a stairwellCharles McQuillan/GettyA radioactivity warning sign on a door to the decontamination roomCharles McQuillan/GettyA man climbing up the escape ladder in a decontamination shower areaPaul Faith/AFPThe shower in the decontamination roomCharles McQuillan/GettyA shower tap in the decontamination roomCharles McQuillan/GettyThe water-filtration roomClodagh Kilcoyne/ReutersA cot in the sick bayClodagh Kilcoyne/ReutersOne of the women's dormitory roomsCharles McQuillan/GettyThe kitchen area inside the nuclear bunkerPaul Faith/AFPCans and packets of food on a kitchen worktopCharles McQuillan/GettyTins of long-life processed food, including dried skimmed milkClodagh Kilcoyne/ReutersTins of margarine, processed cheese and steak & kidney puddingPaul Faith/AFPTea-making facilities in the kitchenClodagh Kilcoyne/ReutersThe men's toilets in the nuclear bunkerCharles McQuillan/GettyThe control centre for all doors in the bunkerClodagh Kilcoyne/ReutersKey switches in the main power control roomCharles McQuillan/GettyThe police roomCharles McQuillan/GettyAn emergency telephone and the main switch to close the blast doorsCharles McQuillan/GettyA bank of telephones at the main entrance areaPaul Faith/AFPThe thick blast doors at the main entrance to the nuclear bunkerPaul Faith/AFPA CCTV camera feeds a live view of the outside world back into the bunkerCharles McQuillan/Getty
Andrew Fraser, of Lambert Smith Hampton estate agents, said the unusual property could be used as a museum or secure storage facility – or for its original purpose. It could also be turned into a home.
