A few years ago when I was in Idaho, I learned about Civil Defense Caves. I knew the government had underground bunkers for government leaders in case of a nuclear war but did not know any preparations had ever been made for citizens.
The following is from an article printed in the Rexburg Standard Journal in 2003:
“The name of the caves dates back approximately 30 years [now 53 years] when the Fremont County Department of Civil Defense used them as a fallout shelter and was issued a special permit from March 1971 to February 1981, according to the Bureau of Land Management.
“The Corp of Engineers surveyed the caves-shelters and figured more than 5,000 people could be sheltered in them…
“The basalt rock provides a good block for radiation, so federal officials felt it would be a safe place to go in case of nuclear attacks. They even widened the entrance of the cave to enable trucks loaded with supplies to back inside…
“The Civil Defense Caves, which stretch approximately 3,000 feet back into the main cave, are actually large lava tubes that formed, estimated, more than a million years ago from a nearby shield volcano.”
The permit expired 45 years ago and now the caves are included on lists of something to do in the Rexburg, Idaho area.
The population of Rexburg in 1970, according to census records, was 8,272. The population in 1980 was 11,559. Unless there were multiple caves, not everyone in Rexburg would be able to fit in a cave that could house 5,000. The population numbers don’t include the surrounding area, either. Where are the other 3200 to 6500 plus people going to go in a nuclear or other bomb attack?
Learn to take care of yourself and your family in many different scenarios. The government may be able to help and protect some of the population, but they won’t be able to help and protect all the population. Become self-reliant in as many ways as possible.
