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Friday, December 29, 2006

Gossip Portland’s defunct nuclear bunker!

Posted by Matt Davis on Fri, Dec 29 at 2:19 PM

Yesterday Blogtown brought you a 1957 cold war film set in Portland, based on the premise of a nuclear bomb hitting the city. The movie featured then mayor, Terry Schrunk, who happens to be related to current District Attorney Mike Schrunk, in a NUCLEAR BUNKER somewhere in Portland:butte3.jpgBut where, I wondered, was this mysterious BUNKER OF DOOM? Well, Schrunk junior (Mike) tells us it was Kelly Butte, which is between Powell and Division at 103rd and Clinton, just East of the 205. Portland’s former “civil defense center,” it later became Portland’s 911 call center until it closed in 1992. This is Kelly Butte today, with creepy “do not enter” wire fences:butte1.jpgAnd here’s the earth-covered entrance, even more spooky:butte2.jpgThese pics are courtesy of local blogger, cyclotram, who has more on the Butte. Blogtown is talking with the City’s parks bureau to get inside, but in the mean time, anyone who a.can help us get in, b.fancies coming along when we go, c.wants to club together and buy Portland’s only half-functioning nuclear bunker (it’s allegedly capable of withstanding a 60 megaton blast)—let me know.

Comments

c.h.v.n.k. can help you. But will they?

Portland State University has a series of sub-basements (basements below the basements) that are connected by tunnels and were originally designed as bomb shelters.

Hell, just about any large public building built between 1945 and 1970 probably has one.

Did you go to the histerical (yes, sic) society? They've got the goods...

I really really want to go.

Um. . . . I think you're off by an order of magnitude. Not even Cheyenne Mt. (NORAD) is designed to a withstand 60 MEGAtonner. I think you meant 60 KILOtons. But, given that Portland can't even save sewer trucks from our crappy streets w/ giant sinkholes, I'd bet the bomb shelter wouldn't withstand an M-80.

Hey, thanks for the link. If/when you go, I would totally fancy coming along.

FWIW, I've got a few more photos of the place here.

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