Bunkerstollen Unterland

Useful Information

Location:	Lung Wai 214, Unterland, 27498 Helgoland. (54.1823565, 7.8877857)
Open:	All year daily 9-19. [2024]
Fee:	Adults EUR 7, Children (0-14) free. [2024]
Classification:	World War II Bunker
Light:	Incandescent
Dimension:	L=200 m.
Guided tours:	self guided, D=45 min, L=250 m, Max=30. V=43,000/a [2023]
Photography:	allowed
Accessibility:	partly
Bibliography:
Address:	Tourist Information, Lung Wai 27, Unterland, 27498 Helgoland, Tel: +49-4725-808808. E-mail:
As far as we know this information was accurate when it was published (see years in brackets), but may have changed since then. Please check rates and details directly with the companies in question if you need more recent info.

History

18-APR-1945	Heligoland bombed by the Royal Air Force.
1947-1952	Bunker facilities destroyed by the British.
2020	Expansion of the Unterland bunker tunnel.
DEC-2022	Unterland bunker tunnel opened.

Description

The Bunkerstollen Unterland (Unterland bunker tunnel) runs under the cliff that separates Oberland and Unterland. The entrance is located at the lift to the Oberland. In the extension of Lung Wai Street, a tunnel leads to the lower end of the lift. The entrance to the air-raid shelter tunnel is about halfway down on the left. The 140-metre-long tunnel runs parallel to the cliff. At the other end there is also a cross-tunnel through which the tunnel can be exited in Bremer Straße, between house numbers 144 and 145.

The tunnel is part of the Helgoland Museum and contains an exhibition on the Second World War. As a museum, it is open daily. The island of Heligoland thrives on day tourism, but the Heligoland civil defence bunker can only be visited by appointment. This is why the bunker in Unterland was also opened to visitors. This required two years of clean-up work. It is equipped like a museum and can therefore be visited daily without a guided tour. The exhibition explains the air raid of 18-APR-1945, but also the so-called Operation ‘Big Bang’ exactly two years later.

Heligoland was of great strategic importance during the Second World War and was therefore fortified accordingly. At the same time, the island was particularly prone to air raids due to its strategic importance. On 18 and 19 April 1945, Heligoland experienced massive bombing raids against the naval base and the Heligoland fortress. The 3000 inhabitants of Heligoland were evacuated as a result.

After the war, the military installations on Heligoland were a thorn in the side of the Allies, especially the British. Preparations were made for Operation Big Bang, one of the biggest explosions in world history. Thousands of tonnes of ammunition were brought in from the mainland for this purpose. It was the largest non-nuclear detonation the world had ever seen, with 6700 tonnes of ammunition. The aim of completely destroying the island's bunkers and military installations was achieved. From 1947 to 1952, the island was used by the British Air Force as a bombing range to dispose of bombs that were no longer needed after the war. Bombing finally ceased in 1952. In the end, apart from this civil defence bunker and the Unterland bunker tunnel, all military installations were destroyed, as was a large part of the island. Heligoland was no longer habitable.

The old bunker tunnel was cleared of rubbish, renovated, an emergency exit installed and the exhibition designed in just two years. However, the rather ambitious schedule was not adhered to, and after the bunker was opened half a year late in December 2022, it had to be closed again. After tests were carried out on operational safety and the effectiveness of the fire alarm system, the tunnel was finally opened in April 2023. It was immediately well visited and is now a great success.

The island Heligoland is a result of salt tectonics, the movement of a salt diapir pressed the horizontal layers of sedimentary rock upwards. As a result, the reddish sandstone formed a hill which was higher than sea level. The erosion by the sea created a cliff all around the island, so it is now a plateau surrounded by red sandstone cliffs with sea caves at the foot of the cliff. Half of the village was built on top of this plain in the southeast. The plateau and this half of the village are called Oberland (upland). At the foot of the cliff towards the southeast, there is a coastal plain, which is the location of the harbour and the other half of the village. This plain and this half of the village are called Unterland (lowland). They are connected by a road, a staircase and a lift built underground into the cliff.