Across Finland, Sweden, and Norway, cold war bunkers are being repurposed as Russia’s war in Ukraine revives fears of conflict in northern Europe. In these three countries, the work blends multiple eras. Traces of the second world war and the cold war now sit alongside modern infrastructure, showing how these societies have adapted their protective measures over the decades.
Finland has about 50,500 civil defence shelters with room for a total of 4.8 million people – a substantial share of its nearly 5.7 million population. Most (about 85%) are private, reinforced concrete shelters in individual buildings. In Helsinki, the entrance to one of the city’s largest shelters is hidden behind an ordinary car park. Thirty metres underground, a tunnel designed to absorb the blast of an explosion leads to a vast complex protected by two 13-tonne steel doors and a decontamination chamber. The bunker contains football and hockey pitches, a gym, a children’s playground, a cafe, and even an area with inflatable structures.
This is the paradox at the heart of Finland’s civil-defence system: spaces designed for war have become part of everyday life. Across Helsinki, underground bunkers now house a 300-metre karting track, a popular axe-throwing club, garages, and a shooting range used by reservists. Another complex, completed in 1993, can shelter up to 3,800 people but normally operates as a swimming pool, complete with an Olympic-sized basin, water slides, diving boards, a gym, and a sauna.
Behind these recreational spaces, however, the original infrastructure remains intact. Ventilation systems, filters, emergency beds, showers, and facilities for dry toilets are regularly maintained. One of Helsinki’s public shelters can accommodate 6,000 people, and the city has 15 other large shelters of the same type. Private companies are allowed to use some of them during peacetime, provided they can clear the premises within 72 hours if the authorities issue an alert.
Combined with mandatory shelters in the basements of residential buildings, Helsinki’s capacity exceeds the city’s population of almost 700,000. For decades, many regarded this system as a costly legacy of the cold war. Now the mood has changed.
“It was a debate before, but thanks to Putin, it no longer is,” says Jukka Lehtiranta, the head of Helsinki’s Civil Defence Association. He continues to train volunteers for a possible wartime emergency. The oldest bunker he shows visitors dates from 1941. During the second world war, 38 families took refuge there from Soviet bombing. Today, the bunker remains fully operational.View image in fullscreen
An employee at work, and reflections at the Bahnhof data centre.
View image in fullscreen
The entrance to the Katarinaberget bunker – one of the largest in Europe – in Stockholm, Sweden.
In Sweden, some of these cold war spaces have found a very different purpose. Thirty metres beneath Stockholm, a former bunker houses the data centre of the Swedish company Bahnhof. Generators stand beside a wall of vegetation, while rows of computer servers occupy a vast chamber carved into granite and gneiss. The company sees the underground facility as more than a striking piece of architecture. Meanwhile, the country takes the risk of conflict very seriously. Conscription, which had been suspended in 2010, was reinstated in 2017.Norway reveals another layer of this history. In Bodø, a bunker built during the German occupation was part of the Atlantic Wall. Restored in 2014, it is now a museum maintained by former air force personnel. Its thick concrete walls still contain an air-filtration system, communications equipment and an Enigma machine once used by the German military.View image in fullscreen
A second world war bunker near a building under construction in Bodø, Norway.
View image in fullscreenView image in fullscreenBut Norway also illustrates what happens when civil defence infrastructure is allowed to deteriorate. The country has about 18,600 shelters, yet stopped building new ones after 1998. Oslo’s largest shelter, designed for 1,100 people, has not been renovated since 1992. Following Finland and Sweden, Norway has shifted to “total defence” mode this year The concept is designed to prepare all sectors of society, including the armed forces, government agencies, and businesses, for a major crisis or even war.View image in fullscreen
Members of the Norwegian civil defence service emerge from a bunker beneath a school in the suburbs of Oslo, Norway.
Across the three countries, these places reveal the uneasy coexistence of ordinary life and preparation for war. Bunkers have become swimming pools, sports centres, museums and data centres, while their doors, filters and ventilation systems remain ready for a crisis.The war in Ukraine has given these hidden spaces a new significance. What once seemed like relics of a vanished conflict are once again being considered essential infrastructure.
Frequently Asked Questions
FAQs Bunker Mentality The Nordics Cold War Shelters Get a New Lease of Life
1 What is a bunker mentality in this context
Its the idea that Cold Warera civil defense shelters in the Nordic countries are being reopened upgraded and rethought for todays threats not just nuclear war but also cyberattacks pandemics and other crises
2 Which countries are we talking about
Mainly Sweden Finland Norway and Denmark though Sweden and Finland have the most extensive shelter systems
3 Why were these shelters built in the first place
During the Cold War Nordic governments feared nuclear war They built thousands of bunkers to protect civilians from blasts radiation and fallout
4 How many shelters exist
Sweden alone has about 65000 shelters with room for roughly 7 million people Finland has around 50000 covering about 44 million people Norway and Denmark have smaller networks
5 Why are they being revived now
Russias invasion of Ukraine rising tensions with NATO and new threats like cyberattacks and hybrid warfare have made governments take civil defense seriously again
6 Whats the difference between a shelter and a bunker
People use the words interchangeably Technically a bunker is a fortified structure while a shelter is any protected space including basements and subway stations designed to keep people safe
7 Are these shelters only for war
No Many double as parking garages sports halls subway stations or storage spaces in peacetime Theyre converted to shelters only when needed
8 How do they protect against modern threats like cyberattacks
Shelters themselves dont stop cyberattacks but they can serve as backup command centers communication hubs and safe spaces if infrastructure like power or internet goes down
9 Can a Cold War shelter stop a modern missile
Mostly no not a direct hit But they can protect against blast waves radiation chemical agents and debris which is still valuable
10 Who gets a spot in a shelter
In Sweden and Finland shelters are assigned by location you go to the one nearest your home or workplace Priority is often given to essential workers and people in dense urban areas
