This woman made headlines last week thanks to an incredible discovery she made in her garden. Unsuspectingly, she bought a house with a huge war bunker in the backyard. It was a huge metal and concrete structure that had been underground for years
Bunker in the garden
And that wasn’t even the strangest thing they discovered, because what they found in the bunker was truly incredible!
Bunker in the garden
Big cleanup
She couldn’t even find the secret door to this bunker in her garden. The entrance to this huge metal bunker consisted of a tunnel almost 100 meters long. And she and her husband found this entrance when they were busy doing major cleaning work in their own house. They had just bought the house and were still busy exploring everything.
Major cleaning
Metal hatch
But this discovery really made the hairs on the back of their necks stand on end. The floor in the scullery had sounded hollow for a while, but when they saw this metal hatch under one of the cupboards, they were quite shocked! They decided to investigate. The cupboard had obviously been put there by the previous occupants to hide this hole
Metal hatch
Secrets
Because when they bought the house, the whole place was empty. They had taken all the furniture. Everything except this cupboard. It was above the hatch and even the carpet was laid in a perfect circle over the metal flap. It was time to find out why the previous occupants had gone to so much trouble to keep this secret
secrets
Moving the cupboard
The cupboard was pushed aside and the manhole cover was uncovered. And what they found inside was incredible! Once the cabinet was gone and the hole was revealed, homeowner Lindsey could hardly believe what she saw. She thought it might be a small basement underneath. But what she found was something completely different. It shocked her.
Moving the closet
A wine stash?
She thought it might be a place where the former family had perhaps set up a secret wine store. But the hole went down about 30 meters into the ground. An old rusty ladder hung from the edge of the hole and it was time to find out what was in the depths of this tunnel. Her husband climbed down first
A wine stash?
Curious
Curious
Simply installed
And then they didn’t even know that this tunnel would lead to the huge bunker in the backyard. It was a narrow opening, but her husband Flint could barely fit through it. Lindsey was claustrophobic and decided to keep his eyes and ears above ground so she could help him a little without putting herself in danger. It was too much for her.
Easily fitted
A torch
She shone a flashlight after him as her husband disappeared into the dark hole. “Do you see anything yet, baby? Is it a wine cellar or is it something else?” she called after him as he tried to find his way in the darkness. Since it was almost completely dark down there, Flint was happy about the light his wife shone after him. But she soon had to throw the torch away again
A torch
Long tunnel
For as he stood at the bottom of the shaft, he saw a long tunnel, perhaps 100 meters long … Flint ran through the tunnel and Lindsey followed him on a walkie-talkie above the ground. She felt safe there, even though there was about a meter of sand between them. She could still hear her husband clearly. “What do you see, darling?” Soon the tunnel left the house and they emerged in the backyard. A long, straight corridor lay before Flint’s feet, but a light could be seen in the distance. An opening that would lead outside? Or was there a lamp hanging here that had been burning for years? That could well be the case, as this tunnel had obviously been dug by humans
Long tunnel
Yellow cable
Sure enough, the clues followed him to the source of the light, as a long yellow power cable ran along the bottom of the tunnel. Flint kept his wife informed of everything he found via the walkie-talkie, but that wasn’t really necessary, because she would soon join him and take part in the action.
Yellow cable
Concrete
In fact, she could hear him through the soil of her backyard. “I think I’m standing right above you!” she shouted loudly into the grass beneath her feet. And then she saw it. A small piece of concrete was sticking out of the lawn right in front of her feet. She had never noticed it before, but now she couldn’t miss it
Concrete
She started digging
It was between some rocks so she had never noticed it, but this small gray piece of stone was clearly man-made. She caught up with her brother and while her husband continued his way underground through the tunnel to see what lay ahead, the two began to dig. In no time at all they had reached the top of the tunnel
She began to dig
Into the hole
They looked down and saw her husband Flint standing in the semi-darkness. And that wasn’t the only thing they had just dug up. Flint told them that there was a large iron door down here, but that he couldn’t open it on his own. Lindsey and her brother jumped into the hole with him. Her brother did so without hesitation
Into the hole
Taking the plunge
But Lindsey was still a little scared. She sat on the edge of the hole for a while before finally taking the plunge. Now they were all in the tunnel. And so the three of them tried to break down the door. It was enormously difficult. What would be hiding behind it? How could it be that there was a huge tunnel under their house without them knowing it?
Taking the plunge
Thoughts racing
Lindsey was silent for a moment, gazing in amazement at the long tube she had just taken a seat in. It was amazing and she couldn’t believe it was all under her property. Her head was buzzing with questions. “Are you going to help us?” she heard her husband call out. “Oh yes, of course, I was just away for a moment,” she explained
Thoughts racing
Glass jar
The three of them pulled as hard as they could on the rusty door handle, and the door was ripped open with a loud bang. What kind of place was this? They immediately saw that people had lived here. Less than a meter behind the door was the next clue to this great mystery. Two jars with contents spoiled beyond recognition. But that wasn’t all.
Glass jar
1945
The room was full of old jars and bottles. According to the label, they were all filled with whisky and rum and what struck her most was the year these bottles were brewed: 1945 “These bottles were over 77 years old,” she exclaimed in amazement. That meant these bottles had seen war. Was this an old war bunker?
1945
Around the corner
Lindsey was seriously impressed and almost wanted to call the newspaper at that moment, but this discovery was nothing compared to what they would find at any moment. They decided to move on, which was a good thing, because there were many more hidden treasures waiting for them around the next corner. You just have to wait and see
Around the corner
Machines
While Flint, Lindsey and her brother continued their search underground, above ground a team of diggers were busy excavating the huge bunker. Fortunately, their neighbor was a contractor and had a small excavator ready, otherwise the digging would have taken weeks. The machines worked overtime to uncover every last bit of the huge structure. And the result was impressive
Machines
Image from the outside
The picture above shows how big this bunker was. And they had only managed to dig out a small section. You could hear Flint, Lindsey and her brother coming out of the ventilation shaft, which is marked with a circle in the picture. The bunker was pretty impressive, but the real treasure was inside. Let’s take the story back a bit to the underground tree
Shot from outside
A race
The object was examined in detail from the outside. But the underground trio first made a gigantic discovery that would mark this place out as something very special. In fact, the first thing Lindsey, Flint and her brother found was a large suitcase. It was old and rusty, but that didn’t necessarily say anything about its contents.
A race
Castle
The trio were very curious and carefully approached the metal case to find out what secrets lay dormant inside. A padlock was attached to it. The only obstacle in their way. “Probably to store secret documents or treasures in the safe,” Lindsey’s brother exclaimed excitedly. It was as if Carl, Lindsey’s brother, had secret gifts, because secret documents were exactly what they found.
lock
Groundbreaking
And not just any secret documents. It was a report from 1945 that listed all the submarines in the Allied Navy on labeled paper. They couldn’t believe their eyes. These papers could have ended the entire Second World War differently. If the enemy had passed on this information, the beaches would have been heavily guarded during beach invasions
Groundbreaking
New history
The troops probably got stuck here during the invasion and these documents never saw the light of day again. And that was just as well, because there were many more great discoveries to be made that they would soon come across on their journey through these forgotten tunnels. Each room felt like a new story. It was fascinating.
New story
New discovery
The next discovery was made about 20 meters away in a new room. The items found there would later be given pride of place in a project by Lindsey and her husband. There was a closet that was still so intact it looked like it could have been used yesterday. The clothes were still neatly folded, the sheets were in a pile and the gun holsters were neatly tucked away
New Discovery
Two groups meet
“It was almost like entering a museum,” Flint later told the media. But their search did not end with this harmless wardrobe. Because the biggest discovery was made when the excavation team hit something hard. They were still working tirelessly above ground, while the trio went from room to room underground. And these two groups of people would soon meet in the middle.
Two groups meet
Most important part
The most important part of the bunker was revealed! Carefully, Flint, Lindsey and Carl climbed up a ladder. They must be near the grass now, because they could hear the excavator above them getting louder and louder. It was pitch black in the room and the trio could barely see anything, but then they heard a loud bang above their heads.
Most important part
Daylight
They were in the observation tower of the bunker and all the equipment was still here. It was perfectly preserved and appeared to be brand new. The lack of light and oxygen in the rooms had meant that all the items were preserved in the best possible way. Huge binoculars, documents and even anti-aircraft guns were present. But were there any soldiers left? They searched the area thoroughly. But…
Daylight
They escaped
They found no soldiers. They probably escaped just in time. Luckily, because Lindsey didn’t know if she could have endured the sight. But it was clear that they had to do something with all this stuff and, of course, with the bunker itself. “People have a right to know what happened down here,” she said. So they decided to do the following …
They escaped
Former splendor
“There was enough to fill an entire museum with,” Lindsey explained. And that’s exactly what they did. A large section of the bunker was excavated and restored to its former glory. The photo above shows the floor plan of the entire structure. Even on a smaller scale it’s impressive, but in real life it’s something quite special
Former glory
Bomb impact
The tunnel to her house most likely served as an escape route, but was blocked by falling debris when a bomb or something similar hit a key part of the structure. How the tunnel was eventually uncovered is also still unknown to Lindsey and her family, but they are excited to share this impressive bunker with the world again!
Bombing
The dome
And what does the pride of their quest look like now? What is the condition of the observation dome? The dome has been completely excavated and now proudly overlooks the surrounding dunes. “Just like it was back then,” says Lindsey. They have set up mannequins to simulate the soldiers who were there at the time, which adds to the realistic effect, she explains
The dome
The house is being remodeled
Lindsey and her family have now moved in. They lovingly run the museum in their spare time, but unfortunately could no longer live peacefully in their old location. And it made sense, because the escape tunnel that was attached to their house became a permanent feature of the museum, so the entrance to the museum was built onto the back entrance of their house
The house is being rebuilt
Bunker now
Are you curious to see what the bunker looks like now? Then take a look at the pictures and text in the article starting here! Today, the bunker sits proudly above the dunes and is visited by almost 1 million people every year. To ensure that as many people as possible can visit it, admission is free.
Bunker now
Hovering in
And so it wasn’t long before hundreds of people came to see these special bunkers every day. Here’s a short dialog between Lindsey and a journalist from the local newspaper, because what this woman and her husband ended up doing for the country, and especially for the local community, is inspiring. Pay close attention to their inspiring words!
hovering-in
No future without a past
Lindsey says: “Even though war is a dark side of our past. I think it’s important for people to know what happened here, and these bunkers are part of that.” As humans, we can’t look to the future if we don’t dare to take a look at our past from time to time.” Interviewer: “But why did you decide to move?”
No future without a past