Buying a new home is an adventure. Everyone has a wish list of what they want the home to have, from an open floor plan to granite countertops and stainless steel appliances in the kitchen, and a master bathroom with two sinks and a walk-in closet. One California couple who recently purchased a new home, got something with their home that they never would have dreamed of.
Colleen and Chris Otcasek were aware that their Woodland Hills property had an unusual feature, a 1960s fallout shelter. But the Otcaseks did not expect that it would be fully stocked, and a perfectly livable and sustainable space, 15 feet below ground in their backyard. They were expecting just a hole in the ground.
Once they descended the rusted ladder into the bunker, the Otcaseks found the following and more: water, clothing, medicine, tin foil, canned food, books, paper products, a lot of coffee tins—and enough room for four people. In all, the Otcaseks estimate there was enough food and supplies to last a few weeks.
The shelter was built in 1961 by Alvin Kaufman, a nuclear engineer, to protect his family from a possible nuclear war, according to his daughter, Debra. She also told Los Angeles CBS affiliate that her father offered to build similar fallout shelters for his neighbors, but they turned him down. Kaufman died in 2004
In 2010, a family in Wisconsin made a similar discovery in their yard. They donated most of the items they had found to a historical society for curiosity seekers to get a glimpse of what life was like during the Cold War era.