There’s no point in having a nuclear bunker beneath your home if boxes of old Christmas ornaments are blocking the door.
That’s not an uncommon scenario in Switzerland, a country with a vast network of Cold War-era nuclear shelters, both public and private, many of which double as storage units and have fallen into disrepair.
But a rise in global conflict, paired with an increased reliance on nuclear energy, has the country once again preparing for a worst-case scenario.
Switzerland is spending 220 million Swiss franc ($354 million Cdn) to make sure its shelters are in tip-top shape and ready to accommodate all nine million Swiss residents, should the need arise.
“Pretty much all Swiss people have a bomb shelter, which has been used for a long time as their storage unit,” nuclear expert Stephen Herzog told As It Happens host Nil Köksal.