{"id":1446,"date":"2017-07-17T12:11:30","date_gmt":"2017-07-17T12:11:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.paliltd.com\/news\/?p=1446"},"modified":"2017-07-17T12:11:30","modified_gmt":"2017-07-17T12:11:30","slug":"hidden-gems-tucsan-man-finds-bomb-shelter-buried-backyard","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.paliltd.com\/news\/hidden-gems-tucsan-man-finds-bomb-shelter-buried-backyard\/","title":{"rendered":"Hidden Gems – Tucson Man Finds Bomb Shelter Buried in His Backyard"},"content":{"rendered":"

Purchasing a new home is an\u00a0exciting adventure within itself, but\u00a0when Tucson resident John Sims bought a house from a friend it was likely the last thing he expected to find were the leftover remnants of a Cold War bomb shelter buried in the back garden.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Upon hearing rumor of the abandoned shelter, Sims immediately requested a shovel and started exploring. \u00a0 Several hours of digging\u00a0yielded little result and Sims began to lose hope.\u00a0 Exhausted and worried the shelter had collapsed or been built under layers of brick, Sims decided to hire someone to help. \u00a0Using a metal detector Sims and the specialist were able to identify exactly where to start excavating.<\/span><\/p>\n

The detector had located a large metal cap three foot under the soil. Sims started shoveling and eventually uncovered the entrance to a 54 year-old Cold War bomb shelter.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/span><\/p>\n

“I was told about its possible existence from the previous owner. I found the permit at city records that had a rough drawing. I focused in with help by a local metal detector distributor\/instructor. He came up with a couple spots of high interest… the second one was jackpot.” “I was hoping it wasn\u2019t a septic tank.”<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/span><\/p>\n

A\u00a0specialist in confined space rescues for the Rural\/Metro fire Department, Sims was able to remove the solid metal lid but waited 24 hours before exploring what lay beneath.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI know too much about confined space, and I was alone at home,\u201d he said. \u201cEspecially if the lid fell back in, there was no way I could lift it from underneath.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/span><\/p>\n

Once the exploring began, Sims found a hollowed out\u00a0shelter with fiberglass dome construction, full of rubble.<\/span><\/p>\n

Records revealed that the bunker was built in 1961 at the height of the Cold War by Whitaker Pools. \u00a0The company were responsible for building several similar shelters in Tucson during the sixties. \u00a0It is estimated that the shelter would have cost around $2700 at the time.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe Cuban Missile Crisis was a big push for them in that era.\u201d Said Sims.<\/span><\/p>\n

During the Cold War Tucson, Arizona was home to almost 20 ballistic missiles armed with nuclear warheads, ready to fire at a monument’s notice.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/span><\/p>\n

Sims and several\u00a0friends embarked on a lengthy journey to restore the\u00a0entrance and rusted spiral staircase before restoring the main structure.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI was really hoping it was going to be a little microcosm \u2026 a time capsule full of civil-defense boxes, radiation detectors and cots and stuff like that,\u201d Sims said.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/span><\/p>\n

Sims states that he\u00a0plans on spending at least one night in the shelter once it is restored and is looking forward to having a retreat from the summer Arizona heat.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/span><\/p>\n

For homeowners curious about whether there\u2019s something exciting (such as a bomb shelter) within the land\u00a0of their current or future home should start with the disclosures.<\/p>\n

Planning Reports provided Groundsure can go as far back as ten years and highlight many potential issues. \u00a0You can purchase a Planning Report and any other Environmental Search you require, directly through Pali. For more information on the products Pali supply please contact a friendly member of the team on 0800 023 5030 \/ search@paliltd.com<\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Full pictures of the project can be found at HeadCramp<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

Image credit to www.imgur.com<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The most exciting thing you’re likely to find buried deep beneath the topsoil on your own property is a piece of pottery or a once beloved pet. John Sims’ discovery makes you question what really lurks beneath the feet.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[11,45,51,1],"tags":[113,76,19,103,105,114],"class_list":["post-1446","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-blog","category-conveyancing","category-environment","category-uncategorized","tag-bomb-shelter","tag-groundsure","tag-pali","tag-planning","tag-terrafirma","tag-underground"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.paliltd.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1446","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.paliltd.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.paliltd.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.paliltd.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.paliltd.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1446"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.paliltd.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1446\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.paliltd.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1446"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.paliltd.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1446"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.paliltd.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1446"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}