With nuclear tensions running high between Canadaās nearest neighbour and North Korea, an Ontario man says thereās still plenty of space available at his massive fallout shelter north of Toronto.
Bruce Beach says heās ready to accept 500 people at his Ark Two shelter in Horningās Mills, Ont., where heās been preparing for a nuclear apocalypse for nearly four decades. Beach claims to have the largest privately-owned fallout shelter in the country, as well as a plan to rebuild society following all-out nuclear war.
The nuclear survival enthusiast built his shelter by fusing 42 gutted school buses together, then pouring two feet of concrete on top. The facility is outfitted with washrooms, a well, two large water tanks, large-scale cooking appliances, storage rooms, bunk beds and approximately half a ton of food.
āThe structure is probably one of the best-designed in North America,ā Beach told CTVās Your Morning during a tour of the facility. He had to bring a work light along for the tour, because the shelter does not have its own lights.
āMost people donāt think Iāll ever need this shelter,ā he said. āThereās a difference of opinion about that, but itās looking more and more like itās going to happen.ā
Fire authorities have tried to shut Beach down for what they say is an unsafe structure, but heās resisted their attempts and insists that his shelter is safe.
He adds that the structure is not just meant to help people survive a nuclear war. āItās about reconstruction of society afterwards.ā
The only people currently signed up to stay in the shelter are those who volunteer to help with its upkeep.
Beach says thereās still plenty of room available in the shelter for those willing to put in some work.
He also acknowledges that he may not live to see the day the nukes hit, but nevertheless, heās hopeful his legacy will contribute to the survival of humanity.