When Bruce Beach left the U.S.A amidst the cold war, he had a plan. He was going to create a space for his family so they never had to worry about their safety. Well, fast forward fifty years and Bruce is still working on it.
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The 86 year old used a strange collection to create this “haven” for his family and despite government intervention and even threats of prison time, he is dedicated to his cause and wants everyone to join him.
Moving Across the Border
Born in Winfield, Kansas, Bruce grew up as the threat of The Cold War loomed over his head and Vietnam following close behind. He already had a wife and young children and was worried for their safety, came up with a drastic plan.
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He decided to move the family to Canada, considered to be safe haven shielded from war. The family settled in rural Ontario, in a small town named Horning’s Mill and while most would consider this to be the end of the story, it was actually the start.
His Real Plan
The reason Bruce had picked such an isolated area in Canada was partly due to security concerns but mostly because he wanted to find a quiet place where he could finally accomplish his life’s mission.
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A place where he could buy empty land for dirt cheap and start on his project without raising any eyebrows and even before his family settled into the area, Bruce started making phone calls to get his own secret project started.
Sourcing Metal
While most men would have spent the next few years spending time in their new community and building roots, Bruce dedicated the next five years to growing his new and unusual collection.
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He wanted to buy out-of-use school buses and he wanted them quickly. 12 years and $12,000 later, Bruce had successfully purchased 42 school buses altogether, a mind-blowing number and the reason behind why he needed them was even stranger.
Digging a 14-Feet Pit
Bruce kept the real reason he needed them buses hidden, all he cared about was acquiring them. It wasn’t until he started digging in the empty field he had bought next to his home did he finally reveal why he needed school buses specifically for his place.
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They were made from the same material: Reinforced steel which was essentially blast-proof. The next step in his plan was to dig a 14-feet pit that he could fit the 42 buses he had bought inside.
Making a Shelter
The determined Bruce had spent many years on this project and he had no plans of stopping anytime soon. He carefully aligned his school busses inside the hole he had dug and started designing an underground shelter.
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Then using 2 feet of concrete, the entire complex was soon blocked off from the outside world. His 42 school buses were now completed secure, buried underground. Together, the buses covered over 10,000 square feet.
The Birth Of Ark Two
Bruce took inspiration from the bible and named the structure “Ark Two.” To this day, the structure is known as one of the largest subterranean complexes on the entire continent. But with only a small family? What was one man going to do with so much space?
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Even if it was the end of the world? Well, Bruce planned to allow people to join in his safe underground bunker constructed from school buses. How many? He had room for 500 people and planned on adding proper facilities for them.
A Decontamination Zone
But before he made rooms for the 500 lucky folks that would be protected from the end of the world, Bruce firstly created a decontamination zone. Of course, he couldn’t let anyone sick on board his bunker!
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Anyone who wanted to enter the bunker would have to go through 7 different entrances, each one scanning for potential diseases which could threaten Bruce or his family. And of course, if you didn’t pass the screening test, you would be tossed outside!
Sourcing Help
So far, most of the work on the bunker had been done by Bruce himself or part-time help he had acquired. Bruce was determined to build the structure independently but with the work now requiring more expertise and detail, it felt like the right time to get someone on board with the project.
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Bruce was very devoted to this underground bunker and needed someone who matched his feelings. He needed the person to also see why the bunker was essential and finally turn’s potential into something tangible.
Professional Expertise
But this was easier said than done. News of his “school bus bunker” had started to spread and no credible companies wanted to be a part of it. But finally, after countless meetings which led to nowhere, he finally found the right person.
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A structural engineer who understood Bruce’s mindset and eagerly came on board to help secure the ark. The engineer supervising Bruce’s project had also worked on Toronto’s major subway system. So, his credentials exceeded anything Bruce could have wanted.
Plumbing & Generators
Now that Bruce was sure that the 42 buses he had buried underneath the ground were structurally sound and would stay that way even during a nuclear bomb blast, it was time to move on to step 2 of the project.
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Burce installed a fully functional and all-encompassing plumbing system, as well as 3 months’ worth of diesel generators. As well as toilets and showers for the 500 residents of his underground bunker. Now, Ark Two was fully self-sufficient.
Food For Everyone
With power and water sorted out, Bruce started planning out the kitchens for Ark Two. Don’t expect any marble tiles and butcher block counters for this space. The dimly lit kitchen was made with utility in mind.
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Bruce was expecting to feed 500 people three times a day! He added in ovens and a giant soup tureen. And who was going to cook all these meals? Well, he had already shortlisted a professional cook entry on the ark whenever the time came to use it.
Separating Men & Women
With all the necessities one needs to live through an apocalypse many of you are probably starting to think that life on the Ark Tow seems to be rather comfortable, considering its purpose and well that is true. It isn’t all that easy.
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Don’t expect to live with your partners on Ark Two or even with your kids. Bruce has the space planned in which men and women are separated, even families. He thinks that keeping families together would take too much space in the ark.
Making Ark Two Child-Friendly
After 40 years of planning, Bruce started work on the last few things needed for the structure. He added facilities for children such as a play area with toys, games, chess sets and even bicycles.
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He added nurseries and classrooms so that children of all ages could continue their education and life as normally as possible. Of course, they would do all this away from their parents.
The Extras
It seemed like Bruce did add some “extras” to his underground bunker and future home. He wanted anyone who stepped inside Ark Two to have all their needs met and not feel like they were ” only surviving”.
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So, he added a dentist chair and while Bruce was in talks with a chef for the Ark Two, no dentists as of yet had accepted his invitation to join him. Apart from the dentist chair, he added a mortuary and even a jail cell.
Contacting the Outside World
This underground city of 500 was expected to be a safe haven as the world collapsed around itself but that doesn’t mean that Ark Two was meant to be a long-term home for any of its residents.
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The whole idea behind the bunker is to stay there only for a short time until help arrived. And to ensure that he could communicate with the outside world, Bruce added a complete communication system through radio waves. Using AM and FM frequencies, the system is able to communicate all around the United States and Canada.
He Feared an Apocalypse
After spending decades of his life dedicated to this project, it is obvious that Bruce Beech was certain that an Apocalypse was around the corner. And his fear of this eventuality is what motivated him to build Ark Two.
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And while he is the only man we know who used 42 school buses to prepare for this fate, he isn’t alone in fearing that an apocalypse is imminent. In fact, there is a whole community of people who call themselves “preppers”.
The ‘Annual Preppers Meeting’
Not every prepper agrees on which apocalypse is most likely to happen or when but they all do agree that the end of the world is near and that everyone should be prepared for this fate.
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Each year at the Annual Preppers Meetings, organizers host workshops to teach preppers new methods for surviving the coming apocalypse. The meetings actually cover all possibilities and attendees can expect to learn about “Surviving in the Wilderness” and “Zombie Survival Camp.”
Can Anyone Get In?
As we mentioned above, Bruce was very selective about who would be allowed inside his bunker. But it’s isn’t all about health, in fact, everyone entering Ark Two needed to prove that they had essential skills.
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Even the journalists who entered inside just to research Ark Two had to prove themselves in front of Bruce before they could gain access. One thing Bruce says is that everyone should know who enters Ark Two? Chopping firewood.
The Struggles He Faced
Over the years, Bruce spent every waking hour working on the bunker. And when he was sleeping, he dreamed about it. But this sort of dedication took a toll on him and his family life. His kids and even his wife stay distant and non-interested in the bunker.
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Apart from that, the 10,000 square feet space is incredibly hard to manage by just Bruce alone and the bunker has taken all of his life’s savings and it isn’t even fully complete yet. On top of that, he had had to deal with a flood, a fire, and even acts of burglary.
The Government Tried to Stop Him
All of this though, Bruce had expected and dealt with. What he didn’t expect was that the government would try to stop and close down his bunker, not just once but several times. In fact, he has been taken to court by officials over 30 times!
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In the eyes of the government and council, the entire complex is a safety hazard to Bruce and anyone else stepping inside Ark Two. Also, Bruce never obtained the proper building permits and was heavily fined. To this day, he continues his legal battles but remains steadfast in his dream about Ark Two and what the bunker represents to him.