While many people may dismiss the idea of preparing for some sort if doomsday scenario, a swath of people all over the globe take the possibility very seriously — after all, National Geographic’s TV channel dedicated four seasons to the practice.
Taking this for the growing trend that it is, a company by the name of Atlas Survival Shelters offers bonafide doomsday preppers the ability to purchase their own secure bunkers starting at roughly $50,000. Constructed out of long pieces of corrugated pipe, Atlas provides a quality product at a reasonable price.
Where a shelter from Atlas truly shines is in the amount of customization the company allows its customers. Be it the basics such as exterior solar panels, a fortified blast door, air filtration system, or a generator, the company lets those designing the room have a little fun.
From infrared security cameras and computers to entertainment setups (LED TVs, sound systems, etc.) and electric fireplaces, buyers have a large degree of control over the outcome of their shelter — for a price.
For a typical, bare-bones, $50,000 shelter, Atlas says it will build the corrugated pipe structure, paint it white, install linoleum floors throughout, and add Formica finishes to the countertops. Unsurprisingly, adding something like a flat screen, LED TV runs the price up a bit but who wouldn’t want to be utterly comfortable in something as claustrophobic and inherently uncomfortable as a bomb shelter? Auxiliary gadgets aside, Atlas also says it adds escape tunnels and advanced lock-out systems to further increase security.
Anyone interested in learning more about Atlas’ shelter offerings — or about prepper community culture in general — can simply set up a private tour of its facility in Montebello, California, right outside Los Angeles. An Atlas branch in Victoria, Texas even offers visitors a physical tour of what it calls a training shelter. Visiting the training shelter lets potential buyers step foot inside an actual underground shelter, giving them a true sense of its size and feasibility.
