His friends were glad to help. They were also hopeful to get a peek at a real Cold War-era fallout shelter. When they arrived, everyone learned about the plans. It was exciting.
They were also very curious about his plan. He told them that he intends to refurbish the bomb shelter and restore it to its 1961 glory. To this end, he said, he set up a GoFundMe page for the project.
Taking All Precautions
Safety first. Mr. Sims had a plan, but he would need some extra help. Of all the rescue calls he and his unit at Rural/Metro answered, quite a few involved underground entrapments.
There were way too many ways climbing into a deep crevice under the ground could go sideways, from his experience.
Calling for Backup
A number of things could go wrong if he climbed down that spiral staircase alone. If the hatch lid was somehow replaced, no one would know he was in there. A massive collapse is another hazard he imagined. His entry might cause a crumbling of the old structure and he would get buried beneath.
However, with a lot of manpower right outside of the bomb shelter, help would be readily available. So, he called some friends who were willing to stand guard while he implemented the plan.
Drawing up the Project Blueprints
Now that he decided to restore the historical relic on his property, he needed to create the blueprints for the project. He had to figure out the best way to go about recreating the fallout shelter. He had to think like a construction crew and like a museum curator.
One idea he had was to include Cold War-era artifacts inside the shelter like Geiger counters, water supply barrels sanitation kits, and vintage HAM radios.
The First Step
First step he took was consulting with engineers and contractors about the restoration project. They advised him to rebuild the upper entrance and the spiral staircase in order to secure the entry space. Once the entry and stairway were solid, he could think about working inside of the actual shelter. To start, the upper entrance would need a concrete pour. This alone could cost up to $2,000. Before appealing to GoFundMe, Mr. Sims posted images and a request to Reddit. His research discovered that there may be 15 to 20 bomb shelters in the Tucson area.
He announced that he would be restoring his. For help, he asked, “Does anyone know of others that are still in decent shape?” Hundreds of responses came in. His Tucson Reddit page attracted so much attention the story spread to local newspapers. And now, here he was, stabilizing the entry with rebar and concrete and anticipating the day he could finally climb down the stairs and see his very own bomb shelter.