BOMB SHELTERS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 23734, 15 February 1939, Page 9

BOMB SHELTERS

COMPREHENSIVE PLAN VAST UNDERGROUND SYSTEM LONDON COUNCIL’S REPORT (United Press Association) (By Electric Telegraph—Copyright) LONDON, Feb. 9. Britain’s first comprehensive local scheme to provide 100 per cent, safety from air raids is published by the Finsbury Council, London. It Is the result of four months’ investigation by distinguished architects and engineers, who advocate deep underground bomb-proof shelters It Is proposed to construct 15 underground shelters that will hold 132,000 persons and will cost £1.387,000, or £lO per capita. The shelters will be vast multistoried concrete cylindrical drums with spiral ramps. They will be 70ft deep and 122 ft in diameter and will allow six square feet for each person. They will be burled beneath invulnerable layers of reinforced concrete, sand and earth. The top layer will consist of a concrete detonator slab against which bombs will immediately explode. Several entrances will allow of the influx of 40 persons per second. The shelters will have air filters similar to those in the Maginot Line. They will include stores for food, water, telephones, internal lighting, shortwave radio and first-aid posts and will be connected by tunnels. All the shelters will be able to be used as car parks in peace time. The council’s report challenges the Government’s “ tinkering ” policy, and describes Sir John Anderson’s steel and blastnroof shelters as death traps which would be blown up into the air by exploding bombs. Similarly, the Government’s shoring up of basements is described as useless and dangerous. EVACUATION SCHEMES PROVISION OF CAMPS (British Official Wireless) RUGBY. Feb. 13. (Received Feb. 14. at 6.30 p.m.) In connection with the air raid precautions the Lord Privy Seal, Sir John Anderson, announced that the approval of Parliament would be sought for an immediate start on a programme costing £1,000,000 for the provision of 50 holiday camps designed for 350 in peacetime and 3500 in wartime, when they will be used to supplement billeting under the evacuation schemes. Results were also made public today of the tests carried out at experimental ranges at Shieburyness, which showed that steel air raid shelters, free distribution of which to families in the lower income groups is expected to commence at the end of the month, will, if sunk in the ground and covered with earth, afford protection to the occupants from high explosive bombs falling within 30 feet. _ In to-day’s experiment a 5001 b medium case high explosive bomb was electrically detonated. Although the detonation tore a huge crater in the earth and oracticallv demolished a substantially built structure representing a row of two-storey houses, the shelters remained intact, although brickwork from the blownup buildings crashed down upon them. THE CIVIL AIR GUARD ALL VACANCIES FILLED (British Official Wireless) RUGBY, Feb. 13. (Received Feb. 14. at G. 30 p.m.) The enthusiastic response to the appeal for volunteers for the Civil Air Guard resulted in all the vacancies being filled for a considerable time ahead, and entry therefore has been closed.