During World War II, there was a massive effort to use air superiority. This would lead to the constant bombardment of Berlin. The majority of bunkers were used for air raids which would last for up to 15 minutes or hours. These air raids kept the whole city on alert for the duration of the war, because the city was so dangerous supplies coming into the city were often limited.
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From 1940 to 1941 there were plans for 3,000 air-raid shelters and bunkers to be built because of the impending threat of aerial assaults. Also, Hitler’s administration requested all new buildings to be constructed with a bunker under it. This was a very optimistic goal to achieve especially once the war had already begun. Only 200 of these shelters and bunkers were ever completed. The particular bunker we visited had 48 rooms and could hold about 1000 people, about 20 people per room. However, in Berlin’s bunkers they followed the political views of the Nazi party only allowing Aryans to enter.
Often an existing subway would be converted into a shelter to save time because they were already built in ideal locations and just needed simple modifications. For example, at the bunker were visited walls in the bunker were painted with a glow in the dark paint that when new could have provided up to 15 minutes of light if the power was to be interrupted.
For people to heat their homes and shelters during the war they turned to the trees in the city since coal was no longer available in large enough quantities. Eventually this would lead to the removal of most of the trees in Berlin. As mentioned in the Bunker page, people turned to their own dried waste to burn for heat.
With the constant threat of bombings the city practiced air raid drills during the night with all of the city’s lights turned off. During these drills civilians would practice getting to the air-raid shelters in the dark to prepare for a real air raid.
Most of the city was reduced to rubble from the constant bombing. The city made efforts to move and sort through the destroyed buildings. Bricks and masonry that were still in usable condition were salvaged and even the more damaged rubble was still used to create hills to build Flak Towers on. The rest of the rubble was moved into giant mounds and covered with earth to create new landscapes for the city after the war.
“From Flak Towers to Mountains of Debris Explore the Devastated Ruins of a WW2 Fortress.” Berliner Unterwelten E.V. Berliner Unterwelten, 1 Jan. 2001. Web. 04 Apr. 2016.