Waiting Out the Apocalypse Underground

WilliamLishmanProject
This ferrocement underground home is constructed of multiple adjoining domes, constructed on a hilltop. First a substantial quantity of earth is removed from the hilltop. The domes are shaped out of rebar, then covered with shotcrete. Then the earth is returned to the hill -- over the now-waterproofed domes, concealing most of the structure.

Building the dome infrastructure of rebar requires some ironworking skills, but allows for considerable creativity.

The image above demonstrates the multi-dome nature of the home, just before covering with earth, and planting with ground-cover.

The interior of the domes receive a great deal of light from the overhead sky-lights, which are designed into the domes.

It is possible to build underground houses which are virtually invisible from most viewpoints above ground. Most humans enjoy plenty of light, and outdoor views. As we learn better ways of providing artificial "full spectrum" diffuse lighting, it becomes more possible to live deeper underground without the windows.

This Swiss design provides plenty of outdoor light and mountain views, but could be made virtually invisible from most ground approaches.

Underground houses are better suited for survival of massive nuclear, biological, or chemical catastrophes -- if advanced preparations are made. Proper air and water filtering and recycling are critical. If residents must stay underground for longer than a few months, the ability to grow food underground becomes more important.

Heating and cooling loads are minimal when living underground, but fuel and power needs for cooking and hot water must be planned for.

BBC coverage of some underground English homes

Monolithic domes -- the premier rapid ferrocement construction method -- can be adapted for underground living.

Faraday Cage EMP Protection of Homes and Circuits

Image from Instructables

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission is pushing Congress for authority to require power companies to take protective steps, which could include building metal shields around sensitive computer equipment.

An expert panel that Congress created to study such an attack says it would halt banking, transportation, food, water and emergency services and "might result in defeat of our military forces."

"The consequences would be catastrophic," said Joseph McClelland, director of the energy commission's Office of Electric Reliability.

"It would bring down the whole grid and cost between $1 trillion and $2 trillion" to repair, said Rep. Roscoe Bartlett, R-Md. Full recovery could take up to 10 years, he said.

The scenario involves a phenomenon called an "electromagnetic pulse," or EMP, which is essentially a huge energy wave strong enough to knock out systems that control electricity flow across the country.

A nuclear explosion 25 to 250 miles above the Earth's surface would be high enough that the blast wouldn't damage buildings or spread a lethal radioactive cloud. Even so, at that height, the pulse would fan out hundreds of miles.

The immediate effect would resemble a blackout. Although blackouts can be restored quickly, an EMP could damage or destroy power systems, leaving them inoperable for months or longer. _USAToday

Some types of ferrocement buildings include a dense wire mesh or steel rebar matrix support, that may provide some shielding from EMP, if the steel matrix is grounded to earth. In fact, homes with plastered siding often contain a conductive wire lathe, which if integrated with a wire mesh over the ceiling -- and grounded to earth -- may also provide electromagnetic shielding from a radiative pulse. More

Electronic circuits -- integrated circuits such as will be incorporated into any "smart grid" -- are most vulnerable. Any modern automobiles with electronic ignition that are not shielded, will be vulnerable. Needless to say, any modern airplanes or airliners caught in the sky by an EMP would most likely be doomed.

The political leadership of the US is focused on symbolic reforms of the auto industry, the energy industry, health care, and other things community organisers might focus upon. The real and potentially serious problems of the US quasi-empire and international peacekeeper, are essentially ignored. Unfortunately, most other advanced nations are similarly plagued by blind and incompetent leadership.

Which means that it is up to you.

Versatile Ferrocement

Members in good standing of the Society for Creative Apocalyptology must demonstrate proficiency at a number of skills. One of the most important skills necessary for the creative survival of an apocalypse is the ability to design and build durable shelter. A number of construction techniques are taught, but one of the most useful construction methods is ferrocement.

Using ferrocement construction, a skilled craftsperson can build comfortable shelter, construct water storage over a large range of sizes, build air-tight food storage facilities flooded with CO2 or other inert gas for long-term storage, construct a sturdy boat or yacht, or carry out any number of other creative building projects.

Most forms of ferrocement construction involve the bending of steel rebar and the manual application of various types of cement. The larger the rebar required for the job, the more expensive and difficult the project will be. One variation of ferrocement construction -- the monolithic dome -- utilises an inflatable polymer form. A thickness of insulating foam is spray applied to the inflated form, then a layer of crossing steel rebar is constructed inside the foam. Then shot-crete (sprayed concrete) is applied over the steel rebar, contiguous with the foam, and forming the inner layer of the dome. (sometimes another layer of foam is applied to the inside for extra insulation)

Ferrocement houses -- particularly when dome shaped and / or earth sheltered -- survive hurricanes and tornadoes, when other forms of construction nearby have collapsed and disintegrated. Earth-sheltered and dome ferrocement are also considered relatively secure in earthquakes.

The monolithic dome style construction is typically used for dome-shaped homes, but can actually be utilised for any shape that is compatible with an inflated form. The monolithic technique can be used for storage buildings as well as homes, and can even be safely situated under 30 feet of earth, if dome shaped.

Shelter is a top priority. The ability to construct rapid improvised shelter is drilled into SCA trainees, of course, but serious members of the Society are in this for the long haul. Long term construction methods that are most likely to see a member through a difficult apocalypse (or even one not so difficult) are just another part of the training.

Hope for the best, but prepare for the worst.

The Society for Creative Apocalyptology is a wholly owned subsidiary of Al Fin Enterprises, which maintains all rights to the name, and copyrighted training materials.