Former Military Base Transformed into Massive Underground Prepper City

The end-of-the-world survivalists would have you believe the world is ending. There are multiple small communities of people who have banded together via the internet and small, in person meetings who believe that human interference is causing the rapid decay of the world as we know it, and who feel the need to prepare for the apocalypse. 

Doomsday Preppers…Prepare

These individuals, also known as doomsday preppers, are people who proactively prepare for various emergencies, such as natural disasters. These preparations might anticipate short term scenarios like earthquakes, or long-term scenarios like the collapse of modern civilization due to political unrest. 

Volatile wars and global warming are some of the other reasons that preppers use to justify their compulsive preparation, as well as the potential for more future disasters such as the COVID-19 pandemic that devastated the world in 2020.

A Bunker Community in Black Hills

One community, which measures the size of a small city, has been hidden away in the Black Hills region of South Dakota, planning for the apocalypse for years. From the sky, the site looks like a vast expanse of land with multiple small hills, but those hills hide what is truly underneath.

What can’t be seen from the sky is that each small hill hides a bunker that’s been built and customized to individual preferences. The community, known as Vivos xPoint, is a long-term prepper encampment whose space can be purchased by those looking to make their futures a little more secure. 

Formerly a United States Base

The compound, which was formerly a United States Army base, dates back to 1942. It was built shortly after the United States entered World War Too, and at the time, it was called Fort Igloo. It was established as the Black hills Ordnance Depot, named after the hundreds of concrete domes that were built to store weapons and ammunition.

The base was once a bustling community of military workers and their families, until the base was eventually closed in 1967, and the site abandoned. 

Empty Until 2016

The site remained empty until 2016, when real estate Mogul Robert Vicino purchased the land from a local cattle rancher. He did this in the wake of founding Vivos, a global underground network of apocalypse shelters, back in 2008.

The compound was perfect for what Vicino was looking for. The multitudes of blast-proof concrete bunkers would provide plenty of shelter for individual families, and fit his idea to create a sprawling survivalist community far from the dangers they were trying to escape. 

No Stranger to Preppers

Vicino is no stranger to building bunkers and various survivalist communities. His first bunker community was built back in 2012, after which he began to seek other ways he could serve survivalists. He believes that the survivalist community is his life’s calling.

“I don’t want to build anything. I have to. There are thousands of people who believe that we are living in very dangerous times. There’s going to be an extinction-level event,” he explained in a statement. “My mission is to build as many shelters for as many people as possible, in time, before the end of the world.”

Located in South Dakota

Vivos xPoint is ideally located in the Black Hills region of South Dakota. According to the community’s website, it’s at least 100 miles away from known nearby nuclear targets, and a passable distance from any large bodies of water, mitigating flood risk.

Additionally, the weather that the Black Hills region sees is relatively mild, meaning that there’s little chance of adverse weather events that might cause mass destruction. This includes hurricanes, earthquakes, and tornadoes, all of which are understandable causes of concern in other parts of the country. 

An Enormous Compound

The compound is nearly the size of Manhattan, making it by far the largest prepper community to date. It encompasses 18 square miles of secure land, with 575 bunkers arranged along 100 miles of private roads.

The compound is built like a fortress, with one road in and out. This allows the 24/7 onsite security team the ability to identify anyone approaching the property from three miles away, and take them down it it’s deemed that they’re a threat to the community. 

Demand Growing After COVID

The size of the community might seem excessive to outsiders, but in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, Vivios said that demand for bunkers grew exponentially. Inquiries into purchasing space in the community grew over 1000%, and annual sales increased 400%.

The company refers to its underground hideouts as a “backup plan for mankind.” They see the community as an insurance policy of sorts, which will come in handy should an even bigger global catastrophe occur. 

Applying for Membership

Securing space in Vivos is not as simple as purchasing a bunker unit, though. Prospective applicants first have to apply for membership, detailing skills and areas of expertise that might come in handy, should the end of the world come around. Candidates are evaluated, and the best of the best are chosen to be invited to join the community.

If your application is accepted, though, prospective members are given the opportunity to purchase one of the compound’s private concrete shelters. The structures are built with a large bulkhead wall and a steel blast door that seals to prevent water, air, or gas from entering, keeping the occupants safe from any dangers from outside. 

Massive Potential in Each Bunker

According to the Vivos website, applicants can purchase a private bunker for an upfront cost of $55,000, with an ongoing annual ground rent of $1000 per shelter. The units are sold as shells without any furnishings inside, and full outfitting is available from Vivos for extra cost, which can be as much as $75,000.

Once completed, though, the potential in these bunkers is astonishing. Each of them features approximately 2200 square feet, and has the capacity to accommodate 10 to 24 people as well as their supplies, for a year or more without the need to venture outside. 

Highly Functional Spaces

Each of the bunkers has the possibility of featuring multiple bedrooms, as well as functional kitchen, living and recreational spaces. It’s up to the buyer to outfit their bunker as they please, though, meaning that there’s a world of possibility to be created in these shelters.

The bunkers are meant to function entirely off-grid, too. They’re designed to be hooked up to solar arrays and wind turbines, generating their own power from a source that won’t be affected should a national power grid blackout occur. Likewise, water is drawn from two underground wells and stored in reinforced water tanks, being distributed to each bunker individually.

Outfitted For a Pandemic

The shelters are also outfitted with the latest technology to prevent illness from penetrating from the outside. Air scrubbers are meant to eliminate all pathogens and radioactive particles before entering the space, protecting inhabitants from the possibility of illness.

According to the company website, the shelters can withstand everything, from a surface blast to a radioactive fallout. All of this can be accomplished, while providing plenty of space and accommodations for families and individuals alike, meaning that even in the apocalypse, there would be no arguing over who would sleep where in the shelter. 

An Appetite for the Prepper Life

The existence of Vivos shows that there is certainly an appetite for the modern prepper mentality, and it isn’t limited to individuals like those featured on Doomsday Preppers. There are certainly those motivated to invest in their future, even if that future involves the end of the world as it’s currently understood.

Companies like Vivos provide viable plan B for individuals who want to feel safe about their future, and do it in style. According to Vicino, “What it’s about is the next generation. Providing them an opportunity to survive, to come out of the bunker someday, to look around and say, wow, we have another chance.”