Mount Weather
The Mount Weather Special Facility is an unacknowledged US Continuity of Government (COG) facility located in a huge underground bunker 45 miles west of Washington D.C., near Bluemont, Virginia. OK, there isn’t high res coverage of the exact area but I love these secret bunkers :). The facility was built in the ’50s as a relocation point for senior government officials in the event of nuclear attack or other national emergency. Today, the site also houses the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s National Emergency Coordinating Center. Some other cool facts:
- Total constuction costs, adjusted for inflation, are estimated to have exceeded $1 billion.
- Tunnel roofs are shored up with some 21,000 iron bolts driven 8 to 10 feet into the overhead rock.
- The entrance is protected by a 34-ton blast door that is 5 feet thick and reportedly takes 10 to 15 minutes to open or close.
- Tunnels inside the complex accomodate 20 office buildings, some of which are three stories tall.
- On-site 90,000 gallon/day sewage treatment plants and two 250,000 gallon above-ground storage tanks are intended to support a population of 200 for up to 30 days.
Loads more reading and higher res photos at FAS and GlobalSecurity.
Thanks: John
Duh why have high res coverage of an area we want to keep protected
Why do people think this place is unacknowledged? FEMA (who does most of the management) has a website on the place: http://www.fema.gov/rrr/weather.shtm
Granted, they do keep a lot of the COG details quiet, but it’s not exactly secret.
And trust me, if you ever get to tour the place, it’s about 1/10th as exciting as you might think (although I did get a cool Mount Weather Fire Department hat).
Yes Richard, that’s why I said “unacknowledged US Continuity of Government”. As in, the US obviously wouldn’t go bragging about where all the leaders run off to in case of an emergency.
There’s another bunker close to there hidden underneath the Greenbrier resort in White Sulphur Springs, WV.
Placemark: Google Maps / Google Earth
They give out tours there now, pretty interesting stuff. And the Greenbrier is one of the best resorts in the world. One of my favorites by far
http://www.conelrad.com/groundzero/greenbrier.html
http://www.greenbrier.com
The Greenbriar bunker is OLD news, folks. The Mt. Weather complex is not something publicized by the administration, except for it’s potential use by FEMA. It was officially removed from mothballs on 9/11. There are numerous similar bunkers/complexes…both within short radius from the nation’s capitol, and peppered around the country (and the world, for that matter). Some are far less complex…others are equally impressive (see Raven Rock). Most are focused around known significant underground water sources, as well as mountainous rock cover (see the Appalachian chain…) If you live in or near a metropolitan area in the US, it’s likely there is some sort of COG stronghold near you.
The whole thing is both fascinating and also kinda creepy…if you’re into conspiracy and “shadow government” fears…