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A toxic facility in the British
countryside off the beaten track.
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00:00:09,280 --> 00:00:12,760
They're far from any
urban centre workforce.
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00:00:12,800 --> 00:00:14,920
They're making
something so dangerous,
4
00:00:14,960 --> 00:00:16,680
they want it far away
from other people.
5
00:00:19,880 --> 00:00:23,000
A deceptively
alluring ruin in Malta.
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00:00:23,040 --> 00:00:25,120
Nobody wanted to be here,
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00:00:25,160 --> 00:00:29,160
and there was always the risk
that you'd never make it out alive.
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00:00:30,920 --> 00:00:35,440
A Ukrainian city littered with
strange concrete remains.
9
00:00:35,480 --> 00:00:37,080
It was top-secret.
10
00:00:37,120 --> 00:00:39,600
Even saying the word 'tunnel'
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00:00:39,640 --> 00:00:41,880
would be enough to
get you sent to the gulag.
12
00:00:43,680 --> 00:00:48,080
And the site of a biblical disaster
in the valleys of Pennsylvania.
13
00:00:49,640 --> 00:00:53,600
The local mill owner started to
say that this was never going to fail,
14
00:00:53,640 --> 00:00:55,760
and he was lying
through his teeth.
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00:01:00,440 --> 00:01:06,960
Decaying relics,
ruins of lost worlds...
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00:01:10,160 --> 00:01:12,280
..Sites haunted by the past...
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00:01:15,880 --> 00:01:19,080
..Their secrets
waiting to be revealed.
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00:01:32,840 --> 00:01:38,960
In north wales are the remains of
a secret facility now a wasteland.
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00:01:43,120 --> 00:01:45,360
This is a wild place,
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00:01:47,080 --> 00:01:50,960
and it is far from civilisation.
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00:01:53,080 --> 00:01:56,920
The surviving signage
suggests a dirty history.
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00:01:57,960 --> 00:02:04,160
North wales is a mining area
of Great Britain, but there's
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00:02:04,200 --> 00:02:07,840
nothing of the infrastructure
of mining about this place.
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00:02:09,240 --> 00:02:12,440
Would make no sense to put a
factory here without workers nearby,
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00:02:12,480 --> 00:02:17,160
so this seems to have some
classified, official purpose.
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00:02:21,400 --> 00:02:24,120
Hollowed-out buildings
in a remote location
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00:02:24,160 --> 00:02:26,640
point to a history
that's been erased.
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00:02:30,520 --> 00:02:32,376
So, you look inside these
buildings and it's very, you know,
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00:02:32,400 --> 00:02:35,080
sort of bare, austere.
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00:02:35,120 --> 00:02:37,760
Concrete walls clearly
intended to store something
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00:02:37,800 --> 00:02:42,520
or make something that was
combustible, sensitive, fragile.
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00:02:46,240 --> 00:02:50,040
You don't see
remnants of wallpaper.
33
00:02:52,520 --> 00:02:55,360
This place has been
emptied systematically
34
00:02:55,400 --> 00:02:57,920
and scrubbed from top to bottom.
35
00:02:59,320 --> 00:03:02,720
And there's this kind
of lunatic graffiti all over
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00:03:02,760 --> 00:03:04,960
the walls of one
of the structures.
37
00:03:07,920 --> 00:03:09,760
Messages from the long-departed
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00:03:09,800 --> 00:03:13,320
tease a deeper history
hidden beneath the surface.
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00:03:16,440 --> 00:03:20,800
If I know anything about the
archaeology of the abandoned,
40
00:03:20,840 --> 00:03:25,560
I know that what's important
here is not these buildings.
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00:03:25,600 --> 00:03:28,960
What's important here
is what lies beneath.
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00:03:37,000 --> 00:03:40,360
Colin barber first came
here ten years ago.
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00:03:42,280 --> 00:03:43,800
'Tis a beautiful place.
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00:03:43,840 --> 00:03:47,760
I think it reminds us of
how bad things could be,
45
00:03:47,800 --> 00:03:51,160
and thank goodness we never
used what was produced here.
46
00:03:53,600 --> 00:03:57,280
In one building he found
strange writing on the walls.
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00:03:59,080 --> 00:04:01,320
Well, I thought
it was a graffiti,
48
00:04:01,360 --> 00:04:05,160
but it's mixed up with
personal comments
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00:04:05,200 --> 00:04:09,120
and comments upon the general
state of the world at that time.
50
00:04:09,160 --> 00:04:12,200
And as we look
at it more carefully,
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00:04:12,240 --> 00:04:13,736
I mean, i'm not great
at math but these
52
00:04:13,760 --> 00:04:19,160
are clearly mathematical equations,
formula of a very advanced nature.
53
00:04:21,000 --> 00:04:24,320
Well, this here is
magnesium carbonate.
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00:04:24,360 --> 00:04:28,800
The one below that
is sodium chromate.
55
00:04:30,360 --> 00:04:33,920
This might have had some
military lineage because,
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00:04:33,960 --> 00:04:36,480
you know, classification
was so strict.
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00:04:36,520 --> 00:04:38,600
They would tell
scientists often,
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00:04:38,640 --> 00:04:40,640
"you can't write these
things down on paper
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00:04:40,680 --> 00:04:42,200
'cause the paper
could go astray.
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00:04:42,240 --> 00:04:44,680
We'll write it on the wall.
We can police up the walls.
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00:04:44,720 --> 00:04:48,400
We can't police up every
scrap of paper and wastebasket."
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00:04:50,480 --> 00:04:52,400
Secrecy was Paramount,
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00:04:52,440 --> 00:04:57,600
because here they were working
on a deadly chemical - mustard gas.
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00:05:01,640 --> 00:05:05,600
Used in the first world war
to clear out enemy trenches,
65
00:05:05,640 --> 00:05:09,000
this weapon was a
toxic sulphur compound.
66
00:05:12,280 --> 00:05:17,280
Mustard gas has nothing to do
with mustard and it's not a gas.
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00:05:17,320 --> 00:05:22,240
It is sprayed into
the air as a mist.
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00:05:23,480 --> 00:05:25,800
And if you get it on your skin,
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00:05:25,840 --> 00:05:28,600
or god forbid you
get it in your lungs,
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00:05:28,640 --> 00:05:31,560
it causes blisters
wherever it goes -
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00:05:31,600 --> 00:05:35,040
blisters, burning and pain.
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00:05:39,120 --> 00:05:43,400
Mustard gas killed 90,000
soldiers in the first world war.
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00:05:45,680 --> 00:05:49,520
This was the beginning of
large-scale chemical warfare.
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00:05:51,840 --> 00:05:56,040
Mustard gas was definitely
one of the most horrific weapons
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00:05:56,080 --> 00:05:58,920
of the first world war - so
horrific that people talked about
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00:05:58,960 --> 00:06:00,680
banning its use after the war.
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00:06:00,720 --> 00:06:04,480
But they were also viewed
by the government in the 1930s
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00:06:04,520 --> 00:06:07,440
as an essential part of British
deterrence, so they manufactured
79
00:06:07,480 --> 00:06:11,320
a lot of mustard gas in the
interwar period to be prepared
80
00:06:11,360 --> 00:06:13,160
in case they needed
it in world war ii.
81
00:06:14,720 --> 00:06:18,080
Well, they built these
tunnels because in 1939,
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00:06:18,120 --> 00:06:21,400
when the first factory came
online, they were producing
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00:06:21,440 --> 00:06:25,840
216 tonnes a week and they
only had storage for 100 tonnes.
84
00:06:28,600 --> 00:06:31,040
At the onset of world war ii,
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00:06:31,080 --> 00:06:33,960
the government dug
new depots underground,
86
00:06:34,000 --> 00:06:36,760
safe from German bombing.
87
00:06:40,040 --> 00:06:43,760
The largest was
here at the ms factory.
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00:06:48,480 --> 00:06:51,800
In these tunnels,
mainly it was storage.
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00:06:51,840 --> 00:06:55,640
65-tonne tanks were bought in
and eventually you could store
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00:06:55,680 --> 00:06:57,920
4,000 tonnes in here.
91
00:07:00,680 --> 00:07:05,960
This facility was so
well hidden and so secret
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00:07:06,000 --> 00:07:11,520
that throughout the whole war
the Nazis never knew it was here.
93
00:07:13,080 --> 00:07:16,320
Facilities like the ms factory
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00:07:16,360 --> 00:07:21,840
made enough mustard gas to
be used in another chemical war,
95
00:07:21,880 --> 00:07:26,920
but one building on the site
had an even deadlier purpose.
96
00:07:30,200 --> 00:07:33,000
This is building p6.
97
00:07:33,040 --> 00:07:37,800
This place was built to
manufacture pyro mustard gas.
98
00:07:37,840 --> 00:07:41,320
It transpired that, with
improvements in technique,
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00:07:41,360 --> 00:07:44,680
they didn't need this
particular building to do that.
100
00:07:46,240 --> 00:07:51,960
Bred down here both sides
were the offices of all of
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00:07:52,000 --> 00:07:55,160
the scientists, the chemists.
102
00:07:55,200 --> 00:07:59,080
Nobody could come into here
unless they passed the guard.
103
00:08:04,200 --> 00:08:09,160
Here they began work on a new weapon
that would be infinitely more lethal.
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00:08:11,520 --> 00:08:14,000
You think mustard
gas is dangerous.
105
00:08:14,040 --> 00:08:19,600
Building p6 is a facility
for making u-235,
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00:08:19,640 --> 00:08:21,360
enriched uranium -
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00:08:21,400 --> 00:08:26,200
the stuff you use to
build atom bombs.
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00:08:28,680 --> 00:08:31,400
Behind the scenes during
the second world war,
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00:08:31,440 --> 00:08:34,080
scientists on both
sides were in a race
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00:08:34,120 --> 00:08:36,320
to build a
thermonuclear warhead.
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00:08:36,360 --> 00:08:41,960
Whoever could build the atom
bomb first would likely win the war.
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00:08:42,000 --> 00:08:45,280
But both sides were
missing a key ingredient.
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00:08:47,040 --> 00:08:50,160
At the beginning of
the second world war
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00:08:50,200 --> 00:08:53,680
we were looking
at a way to remove
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00:08:53,720 --> 00:08:59,600
the isotope uranium-235
from uranium-238,
116
00:08:59,640 --> 00:09:03,600
because this substance was
essential in the manufacture
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00:09:03,640 --> 00:09:05,520
of any atomic bombs.
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00:09:05,560 --> 00:09:08,520
That was the bit that
made you go 'bang'.
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00:09:11,400 --> 00:09:17,360
To make that bang they needed
nearly 15kg of radioactive material,
120
00:09:17,400 --> 00:09:20,520
an impossible-sounding task.
121
00:09:20,560 --> 00:09:25,880
But here in building p6
they tested a new process.
122
00:09:27,440 --> 00:09:30,760
By heating uranium and
putting it through a filter,
123
00:09:30,800 --> 00:09:32,520
it would become enriched.
124
00:09:34,440 --> 00:09:38,200
It was a discovery that
transformed nuclear science.
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00:09:39,760 --> 00:09:41,880
Here in north wales
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00:09:41,920 --> 00:09:46,200
the allies achieve something that
no-one had ever achieved before.
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00:09:46,240 --> 00:09:51,720
They're able to produce
enriched uranium with u-235
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00:09:51,760 --> 00:09:54,120
on an industrial scale.
129
00:09:56,000 --> 00:09:59,840
In less than four years the
Manhattan project tested
130
00:09:59,880 --> 00:10:04,920
its first nuclear bomb, and a month
later two were dropped on Japan.
131
00:10:06,480 --> 00:10:10,920
The second world war ended
with a chilling glimpse of the future.
132
00:10:13,560 --> 00:10:18,320
Nuclear weapons ended the
second world war quickly, and if
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00:10:18,360 --> 00:10:22,360
it'd been necessary they'd have
been used to end the war in Europe too.
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00:10:27,960 --> 00:10:30,440
At the close of the
second world war,
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00:10:30,480 --> 00:10:35,400
the ms factory was decommissioned
and its materials were disposed of.
136
00:10:36,960 --> 00:10:40,480
Everybody now
appreciates the importance
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00:10:40,520 --> 00:10:42,600
of the use of the atomic bombs.
138
00:10:42,640 --> 00:10:45,640
It is the thing which
has defined our lives,
139
00:10:45,680 --> 00:10:50,880
and to think that it's happened
here in a little Welsh village,
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00:10:50,920 --> 00:10:54,240
I think most of 'em were
very impressed with that.
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00:11:01,120 --> 00:11:04,160
On the island of Malta,
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00:11:04,200 --> 00:11:07,360
in the calm waters
surrounding the capital valetta,
143
00:11:07,400 --> 00:11:10,680
lies a marooned site
with hidden depths.
144
00:11:16,440 --> 00:11:19,880
This building sits
right on the waterfront,
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00:11:19,920 --> 00:11:21,640
catching the sunshine.
146
00:11:21,680 --> 00:11:27,440
And in many ways it looks
like an idyllic place to be.
147
00:11:27,480 --> 00:11:30,840
But parts of it are
in real disrepair.
148
00:11:32,400 --> 00:11:34,680
It's overgrown in places,
149
00:11:34,720 --> 00:11:38,440
and on the stairs this
creeping plant has taken over.
150
00:11:40,040 --> 00:11:44,480
The balconies look like they
could collapse at any minute.
151
00:11:45,360 --> 00:11:48,320
The walls here are covered in
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00:11:48,360 --> 00:11:52,760
carvings, names,
dates, pictures.
153
00:11:52,800 --> 00:11:56,960
There's hundreds of years of
history etched into the stone.
154
00:11:59,320 --> 00:12:01,240
As inviting as it may
have first appeared,
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00:12:01,280 --> 00:12:04,520
the true nature of
the site is obscured.
156
00:12:04,560 --> 00:12:08,160
Those rooms upstairs
are light and breezy.
157
00:12:08,200 --> 00:12:12,120
It feels like it had an air of
luxury about it back in the day.
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00:12:12,160 --> 00:12:17,680
It looks like it could be a
palace or a rich person's home,
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00:12:17,720 --> 00:12:20,400
but it's something
far, far different.
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00:12:22,080 --> 00:12:26,320
On the surface, this place seems
to have been one thing for most of
161
00:12:26,360 --> 00:12:31,320
its life, but if you then take
a walk behind the staircase,
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00:12:31,360 --> 00:12:34,960
something surprising
creeps up on you.
163
00:12:36,320 --> 00:12:40,720
Carved from the rock behind
is an entrance to an underworld.
164
00:12:42,680 --> 00:12:49,280
Some of these tunnels are
very small, very claustrophobic,
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00:12:49,320 --> 00:12:53,160
and the further you go in, you
get to these dungeon-like spaces
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00:12:53,200 --> 00:12:57,480
and these rooms full
of rusting equipment.
167
00:12:57,520 --> 00:13:01,480
You start to wonder what
was really going on here.
168
00:13:08,080 --> 00:13:12,840
Travelling from afar, the first
arrivals to this mediterranean site
169
00:13:12,880 --> 00:13:15,360
landed here in 1643.
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00:13:18,280 --> 00:13:21,640
They found themselves
lined up outside the doors
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00:13:21,680 --> 00:13:25,600
of the main building, later
referred to as the old palace.
172
00:13:28,680 --> 00:13:34,960
Alex torpiano is an architect who
worked for the firm that manages it.
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00:13:35,000 --> 00:13:40,360
This is the courtyard of the
oldest palace of the complex.
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00:13:40,400 --> 00:13:45,560
People would arrive from
the ships through this entrance.
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00:13:45,600 --> 00:13:49,560
Their goods would be
taken to the two warehouses
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00:13:49,600 --> 00:13:51,120
on either side or at the back,
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00:13:51,160 --> 00:13:55,680
and they would go up this grand
staircase to their living quarters.
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00:13:57,240 --> 00:14:00,360
Once you're bought into here,
there's no way you can get out of
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00:14:00,400 --> 00:14:03,720
this place before a set
period of time is over.
180
00:14:05,280 --> 00:14:09,000
The elaborate design
with its grand courtyards,
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00:14:09,040 --> 00:14:12,040
large rooms and
breathtaking views
182
00:14:12,080 --> 00:14:15,520
immediately makes clear
this was no ordinary prison.
183
00:14:18,520 --> 00:14:21,880
The people staying here
weren't necessarily the kind
184
00:14:21,920 --> 00:14:23,800
that you would normally lock up.
185
00:14:23,840 --> 00:14:27,360
There had to be a reason
why they were being isolated,
186
00:14:27,400 --> 00:14:30,240
even in these relatively
nice conditions.
187
00:14:32,800 --> 00:14:36,720
This is the first floor of
the 17th century building.
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00:14:36,760 --> 00:14:38,800
These are the accommodation,
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00:14:38,840 --> 00:14:42,320
the living quarters of the
people confined in this building.
190
00:14:43,440 --> 00:14:46,400
Nice, airy, high ceilings,
191
00:14:46,440 --> 00:14:49,480
well ventilated, well lit.
192
00:14:49,520 --> 00:14:52,600
Not a poor place to be confined.
193
00:14:52,640 --> 00:14:57,840
But despite the visitors' wealth
and status, the locals still had
194
00:14:57,880 --> 00:15:02,080
reason to fear them and locked
them inside under armed guard.
195
00:15:03,480 --> 00:15:05,856
The people who were confined here
were not confined because they were
196
00:15:05,880 --> 00:15:09,320
criminals but because they
were travelling to Malta from other
197
00:15:09,360 --> 00:15:12,200
countries in the mediterranean,
and they needed to be isolated
198
00:15:12,240 --> 00:15:16,040
from the population just to
make sure that they didn't
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00:15:16,080 --> 00:15:20,880
carry diseases and wouldn't
spread and affect the population.
200
00:15:23,040 --> 00:15:24,920
This is the lazzaretto,
201
00:15:24,960 --> 00:15:29,360
Malta's first line of defence
against plague and pestilence.
202
00:15:31,280 --> 00:15:36,360
We've seen recently just how
quickly infection can spread.
203
00:15:36,400 --> 00:15:39,640
Even in the modern
world it's extremely difficult,
204
00:15:39,680 --> 00:15:43,200
if not impossible, to
control an outbreak.
205
00:15:43,240 --> 00:15:47,000
Back then people didn't
even know that cleanliness
206
00:15:47,040 --> 00:15:49,240
helped keep you safe.
207
00:15:49,280 --> 00:15:53,920
The only measure they knew
about was to quarantine people,
208
00:15:53,960 --> 00:15:55,776
to isolate them from
the rest of the population.
209
00:15:55,800 --> 00:15:58,320
You quarantine
the people upstairs
210
00:15:58,360 --> 00:16:01,040
and you quarantine
the goods downstairs.
211
00:16:02,600 --> 00:16:07,280
Throughout the middle ages, a
number of outbreaks of disease at ports
212
00:16:07,320 --> 00:16:11,360
led to deadly pandemics sweeping
across Europe and beyond.
213
00:16:13,040 --> 00:16:16,000
The worst of these,
the black death,
214
00:16:16,040 --> 00:16:19,920
had struck three centuries
before this place was built.
215
00:16:19,960 --> 00:16:24,040
It killed as many as 75
million people across the world.
216
00:16:25,640 --> 00:16:30,560
The island itself had been
used as a quarantine site
217
00:16:30,600 --> 00:16:34,640
for more than 100 years
before they built this structure.
218
00:16:34,680 --> 00:16:38,880
But they needed something a
bit more secure as time went on,
219
00:16:38,920 --> 00:16:40,376
and that's why they
started to build this facility.
220
00:16:40,400 --> 00:16:45,400
One of the reasons this place is
so large is, once you were there,
221
00:16:45,440 --> 00:16:49,640
the quarantine, the isolation
was absolutely unbreakable.
222
00:16:51,840 --> 00:16:55,760
Derived from the Italian
word for the number 40,
223
00:16:55,800 --> 00:16:59,880
a quarantine typically
lasted 40 days -
224
00:16:59,920 --> 00:17:03,120
enough time to see if
any symptoms appeared.
225
00:17:04,680 --> 00:17:08,600
People didn't really understand
what caused infections and how
226
00:17:08,640 --> 00:17:11,760
it spread, but I think
fairly early on they decided
227
00:17:11,800 --> 00:17:15,200
that perhaps the best thing to
do is to isolate whoever was sick.
228
00:17:15,240 --> 00:17:19,480
Quarantine was slightly different in
the sense that people who are not -
229
00:17:19,520 --> 00:17:22,040
or you didn't know that they
were sick, they could be sick,
230
00:17:22,080 --> 00:17:25,440
so they were kept in a
period to see whether the signs
231
00:17:25,480 --> 00:17:29,520
of the plague would come
out within that 40-day period.
232
00:17:29,560 --> 00:17:34,360
There were guards that making
sure that people did not go in or out.
233
00:17:34,400 --> 00:17:39,640
Effectively death penalty
if you broke that rule.
234
00:17:39,680 --> 00:17:43,240
No matter your status
or level of wealth,
235
00:17:43,280 --> 00:17:46,520
enduring the isolation
period was par for the course
236
00:17:46,560 --> 00:17:50,000
for all those wishing
to set foot in Malta.
237
00:17:50,040 --> 00:17:54,600
If you had 40 days to kill, this
wasn't the worst place to be.
238
00:17:54,640 --> 00:17:56,056
I mean, you had the
views and the sunshine,
239
00:17:56,080 --> 00:17:57,840
you had plenty of company.
240
00:17:57,880 --> 00:17:59,960
It's almost like
a holiday retreat
241
00:18:00,000 --> 00:18:03,800
but with the hazard of a
potentially deadly disease.
242
00:18:05,400 --> 00:18:09,560
Many centuries worth of
visitors were locked inside here,
243
00:18:09,600 --> 00:18:11,960
and their presence
is still evident.
244
00:18:15,240 --> 00:18:18,000
What's amazing about this
place, though, is that its history is
245
00:18:18,040 --> 00:18:21,720
carved into the walls
of the building, literally.
246
00:18:25,960 --> 00:18:29,080
On either side of the living
areas there were these terraces,
247
00:18:29,120 --> 00:18:33,600
which the people could
use to while away the time
248
00:18:33,640 --> 00:18:37,280
with the view of the sea
and of valetta and the sun,
249
00:18:37,320 --> 00:18:42,280
and many of them
left a Mark on the walls.
250
00:18:42,320 --> 00:18:46,160
Among the countless
numbers quarantined here
251
00:18:46,200 --> 00:18:50,880
was a famous novelist, a future
prime minister of the United Kingdom
252
00:18:50,920 --> 00:18:55,120
and the scandalous
romantic poet lord Byron.
253
00:18:57,200 --> 00:19:01,880
Here we have what is
attributed to be lord Byron's graffiti
254
00:19:01,920 --> 00:19:03,120
when he was here.
255
00:19:03,160 --> 00:19:08,080
Difficult to read but experts
tell us that that is what it is.
256
00:19:08,120 --> 00:19:12,840
The graffiti Mark the history
of the people who came here,
257
00:19:12,880 --> 00:19:15,280
and some of them
wrote their story.
258
00:19:15,320 --> 00:19:18,440
There's one who talks about
coming from constantinople,
259
00:19:18,480 --> 00:19:24,160
the other one etched
the ship that he was on.
260
00:19:24,200 --> 00:19:28,040
Me, it's four beautiful walls
which contain all these stories
261
00:19:28,080 --> 00:19:30,400
which need to be deciphered.
262
00:19:33,960 --> 00:19:36,400
But away from the
sunshine and sea views
263
00:19:36,440 --> 00:19:39,360
lurks a far darker secret.
264
00:19:41,000 --> 00:19:44,960
What about these other
areas - not the nice areas
265
00:19:45,000 --> 00:19:49,120
for holding wealthy travellers
but these darker areas,
266
00:19:49,160 --> 00:19:52,200
the more claustrophobic
ones, the hidden spaces?
267
00:19:54,840 --> 00:19:57,680
If the people were being locked
up in the nice part of this site,
268
00:19:57,720 --> 00:20:00,640
then what exactly was
going on back there?
269
00:20:00,680 --> 00:20:03,560
The lazzaretto was repurposed
270
00:20:03,600 --> 00:20:07,080
to guard Malta against
a very different threat.
271
00:20:07,120 --> 00:20:09,800
Now, the island had been
important for centuries
272
00:20:09,840 --> 00:20:12,560
'cause it's at a strategic
position in the mediterranean,
273
00:20:12,600 --> 00:20:16,800
but in world war ii it
became even more important.
274
00:20:16,840 --> 00:20:21,240
So this was a nerve centre
of operations of submarines
275
00:20:21,280 --> 00:20:25,200
in the mediterranean with
the royal Navy for the allies,
276
00:20:25,240 --> 00:20:27,040
so this was a very
important place.
277
00:20:28,880 --> 00:20:35,000
In 1940 Italy joined forces
with Nazi Germany, and soon
278
00:20:35,040 --> 00:20:40,200
the axis powers will dominate more
than just the mediterranean waters.
279
00:20:40,240 --> 00:20:45,400
Malta under British rule was to
become a Thorn in the enemy's side,
280
00:20:46,960 --> 00:20:50,760
and the lazzaretto itself
was drawn into battle.
281
00:20:52,000 --> 00:20:55,320
So this is the heart of
the submarine depot.
282
00:20:55,360 --> 00:20:57,920
A submarine depot
means basically two things -
283
00:20:57,960 --> 00:21:00,160
one is the control
of operations,
284
00:21:00,200 --> 00:21:04,000
so it's a communications centre
for submarines, and the second,
285
00:21:04,040 --> 00:21:07,360
you were supposed to have
somewhere where submarines could refuel
286
00:21:07,400 --> 00:21:10,920
from the oil tanks that were
stored underground as well.
287
00:21:12,480 --> 00:21:17,040
This place was all about repairing
and refuelling the submarines,
288
00:21:17,080 --> 00:21:21,800
getting them ready to be sent back
out on patrol in the mediterranean.
289
00:21:23,360 --> 00:21:28,480
The two sides used submarines
very extensively to attack
290
00:21:28,520 --> 00:21:32,840
especially supply ships and
also, of course, the battleships.
291
00:21:34,960 --> 00:21:36,856
The battle of the submarines
in the mediterranean, I think,
292
00:21:36,880 --> 00:21:40,320
was crucial in the
way the war developed.
293
00:21:41,760 --> 00:21:46,040
The above-ground buildings
were requisitioned for operations,
294
00:21:46,080 --> 00:21:49,240
but on their own
they weren't enough.
295
00:21:50,720 --> 00:21:52,936
If the allies are gonna use this
as a staging point, that's also going
296
00:21:52,960 --> 00:21:56,560
to make Malta one big target.
297
00:21:56,600 --> 00:21:58,920
If you're gonna
put facilities here,
298
00:21:58,960 --> 00:22:02,680
they have to be facilities that can
withstand a heavy bombardment.
299
00:22:04,280 --> 00:22:10,760
During the war, Malta
suffered 3,343 air raids.
300
00:22:15,120 --> 00:22:18,600
Use of this underground complex
allowed work to continue here
301
00:22:18,640 --> 00:22:19,920
despite the bombs,
302
00:22:19,960 --> 00:22:25,040
but the full picture of how it all
ran is still hard to piece together.
303
00:22:26,880 --> 00:22:30,520
The whole system of these rooms,
304
00:22:30,560 --> 00:22:34,600
these chambers, partly to contain
equipment and power supply
305
00:22:34,640 --> 00:22:39,520
and also to have habitation
for the soldiers, for the Garrison.
306
00:22:39,560 --> 00:22:44,120
Difficult to understand exactly
what the purpose each room was,
307
00:22:44,160 --> 00:22:47,160
because first of all we don't
find that much documentation.
308
00:22:47,200 --> 00:22:49,320
Presumably all
of this was secret.
309
00:22:49,360 --> 00:22:52,560
Suppose somewhere
there is an explanation.
310
00:22:53,560 --> 00:22:57,320
From here allied submarines
went out in to the sea
311
00:22:57,360 --> 00:23:02,280
and caused untold amount of
damage to the German and Italian navies
312
00:23:02,320 --> 00:23:04,360
and their supplies.
313
00:23:05,920 --> 00:23:09,200
This island was
absolutely crucial
314
00:23:09,240 --> 00:23:11,000
in winning the war
in the mediterranean,
315
00:23:11,040 --> 00:23:14,120
and this place
played a key role in it.
316
00:23:16,120 --> 00:23:19,400
Despite the war
damage, the site was
317
00:23:19,440 --> 00:23:23,360
used as an infectious diseases
hospital for the next 30 years.
318
00:23:26,040 --> 00:23:32,720
But once vacated, neglect, vandalism
and time each had their way with it.
319
00:23:37,760 --> 00:23:42,200
Today the stunning architecture
on display here is now the focus of a
320
00:23:42,240 --> 00:23:45,000
major restoration project
321
00:23:45,040 --> 00:23:50,120
hoping to return the
buildings to their former glory.
322
00:23:50,160 --> 00:23:54,000
It's a unique building, and
it should find its place again
323
00:23:54,040 --> 00:23:55,960
in the glory in the
middle of this harbour.
324
00:23:56,000 --> 00:24:01,080
I think it's a place where we could
learn the very complicated history
325
00:24:01,120 --> 00:24:03,401
of this place, which reflects
the history of the island.
326
00:24:11,720 --> 00:24:17,360
In rural Pennsylvania lies a forest
valley and a trail of destruction.
327
00:24:25,360 --> 00:24:30,120
Across the valley you can
see these jagged structures -
328
00:24:30,160 --> 00:24:33,160
very well weathered, torn apart.
329
00:24:35,360 --> 00:24:39,960
Whatever somebody did here
was some mass industrial process,
330
00:24:40,000 --> 00:24:45,440
somewhere in the back woods of the
allegheny mountains of Pennsylvania.
331
00:24:47,000 --> 00:24:50,080
They're almost completely
subsumed by mother nature.
332
00:24:50,120 --> 00:24:51,440
They're overgrown.
333
00:24:51,480 --> 00:24:54,480
They've been clearly
there for some time
334
00:24:54,520 --> 00:24:56,320
and not been used
for a long while.
335
00:24:57,880 --> 00:25:02,080
Following the trail north is
another piece of the puzzle -
336
00:25:02,120 --> 00:25:04,480
the remains of a wall.
337
00:25:08,800 --> 00:25:11,520
They were once
in some sort of line,
338
00:25:11,560 --> 00:25:15,480
but they're misaligned and
almost like a sort of dominos in -
339
00:25:15,520 --> 00:25:17,360
that have fallen
in funny shapes.
340
00:25:19,800 --> 00:25:25,040
It could be one of the hundreds
of dams that we see in the runs
341
00:25:25,080 --> 00:25:27,640
and streams of Pennsylvania.
342
00:25:27,680 --> 00:25:30,240
But if this was a dam,
343
00:25:30,280 --> 00:25:32,680
what smashed it to pieces?
344
00:25:40,760 --> 00:25:44,840
At the bottom of the valley
is the quiet town of Austin,
345
00:25:44,880 --> 00:25:48,080
but it wasn't always this way.
346
00:25:48,120 --> 00:25:52,600
Alvie fourness grew up
a few miles from here.
347
00:25:52,640 --> 00:25:59,560
110 years ago this town had a
population of about 3,000 people.
348
00:25:59,600 --> 00:26:04,760
This would have been a very busy
town, all types of businesses here.
349
00:26:04,800 --> 00:26:07,760
There would be
schools and hospitals,
350
00:26:07,800 --> 00:26:10,800
a movie theatres, restaurants.
351
00:26:10,840 --> 00:26:16,960
Back in the early 1900s,
Austin was a boom town.
352
00:26:17,000 --> 00:26:19,920
Like many prosperous
settlements,
353
00:26:19,960 --> 00:26:24,480
there were opportunities here for
a few less respectable enterprises.
354
00:26:27,680 --> 00:26:31,760
One of our most famous citizens
at the time was Cora Brooks,
355
00:26:31,800 --> 00:26:38,120
who had a boarding house
located about 2 miles north of here -
356
00:26:38,160 --> 00:26:43,760
a brothel sort of environment
probably, although those type
357
00:26:43,800 --> 00:26:45,920
of things were very illegal.
358
00:26:45,960 --> 00:26:50,280
Cora was somewhat an
outcast in the community.
359
00:26:50,320 --> 00:26:55,520
But while Cora Brooks' establishment
was frowned upon by many,
360
00:26:55,560 --> 00:26:59,360
in time she would become
a sort of saviour of the town.
361
00:27:00,360 --> 00:27:04,280
First, though, Austin had
to weather another storm
362
00:27:04,320 --> 00:27:07,360
that threatened to make
this boom town go bust.
363
00:27:07,400 --> 00:27:11,320
I mean, this region
was famous for its trees,
364
00:27:11,360 --> 00:27:13,120
and so the lumber
market was a big thing.
365
00:27:13,160 --> 00:27:16,400
But soon enough, too
many people working,
366
00:27:16,440 --> 00:27:18,400
the place was
effectively deforested,
367
00:27:18,440 --> 00:27:21,200
and the bottom had fallen
out of the lumber market.
368
00:27:22,240 --> 00:27:26,520
But one entrepreneur
found a way to make money.
369
00:27:26,560 --> 00:27:29,360
His name was George bayless,
370
00:27:29,400 --> 00:27:32,920
and here he built
the bayless paper mill.
371
00:27:34,680 --> 00:27:38,320
Bayless's paper mill was
a huge, huge complex.
372
00:27:38,360 --> 00:27:42,560
It took the raw material, all
the wood, turned it into pulp,
373
00:27:42,600 --> 00:27:46,560
cleaned it, dried it and
then made it into paper.
374
00:27:46,600 --> 00:27:49,640
A massive operation
375
00:27:49,680 --> 00:27:52,320
with specialised buildings
spreading out across the valley.
376
00:27:53,960 --> 00:27:57,920
The pulp product would
come into this area,
377
00:27:57,960 --> 00:28:01,920
be placed in these
digestors or vats.
378
00:28:01,960 --> 00:28:05,920
Certain chemical
processes were occurring,
379
00:28:05,960 --> 00:28:07,960
give the final pulp product.
380
00:28:09,800 --> 00:28:13,920
The mill produced almost
500 tonnes of paper a week.
381
00:28:15,480 --> 00:28:20,320
But something on this scale
needs reliable, cheap power source.
382
00:28:20,360 --> 00:28:24,120
1900, water is the key to that.
383
00:28:25,600 --> 00:28:30,440
To power the mill, bayless
commissioned this - the Austin dam.
384
00:28:30,480 --> 00:28:33,960
The first dam was
just an earth-built one,
385
00:28:34,000 --> 00:28:38,360
and that absolutely worked, and
it showed what could be achieved.
386
00:28:38,400 --> 00:28:40,960
And then of course
the factory got bigger,
387
00:28:41,000 --> 00:28:42,600
the demand for power got bigger,
388
00:28:42,640 --> 00:28:44,880
and you're gonna
need a bigger reservoir,
389
00:28:44,920 --> 00:28:48,280
and a bigger dam
to hold it back.
390
00:28:48,320 --> 00:28:51,000
To upscale the enterprise,
391
00:28:51,040 --> 00:28:56,240
the factory owner hired an
engineer to draw up a design.
392
00:28:56,280 --> 00:29:00,120
It was gonna take 43,000
cubic feet of concrete
393
00:29:00,160 --> 00:29:02,120
and a dam that was 50 feet high.
394
00:29:02,160 --> 00:29:05,640
This was gonna be an
epic engineering feat,
395
00:29:05,680 --> 00:29:08,840
but it was also
gonna be expensive.
396
00:29:08,880 --> 00:29:12,920
Bayless commissioned the
biggest gravity dam in Pennsylvania.
397
00:29:14,920 --> 00:29:18,400
A clear problem building a
dam in any valley, and particularly
398
00:29:18,440 --> 00:29:22,560
in these types of valleys, where
you've got vegetation and a soil,
399
00:29:22,600 --> 00:29:27,160
is the problem of the soil being
eroded in and around the valley.
400
00:29:27,200 --> 00:29:30,360
The gravity dam
relies on weight.
401
00:29:30,400 --> 00:29:35,120
32,000 tonnes of concrete
resisted the push of the water,
402
00:29:35,160 --> 00:29:37,800
but underneath
was ordinary soil,
403
00:29:37,840 --> 00:29:40,280
which water could
pass right through.
404
00:29:44,240 --> 00:29:46,896
I mean, if you think about it, if
you build a swimming pool at home,
405
00:29:46,920 --> 00:29:49,400
you don't just dig a hole in
the ground and pour water in,
406
00:29:49,440 --> 00:29:51,160
because it'll seep through.
407
00:29:51,200 --> 00:29:53,256
And that's kinda like the
problem they've got here,
408
00:29:53,280 --> 00:29:54,720
but it's on a much bigger scale.
409
00:29:56,600 --> 00:30:00,600
If water can get underneath,
gravity wouldn't be enough to
410
00:30:00,640 --> 00:30:03,960
hold back the reservoir
and the dam would fail.
411
00:30:06,600 --> 00:30:10,360
So the engineer designed
a safety mechanism -
412
00:30:10,400 --> 00:30:13,720
an underground wall to prevent
water getting under the dam.
413
00:30:17,480 --> 00:30:19,920
In December 1909,
414
00:30:19,960 --> 00:30:24,000
the Austin dam was completed
but something wasn't right.
415
00:30:26,040 --> 00:30:31,880
It became obvious early on that
the dam would be troublesome.
416
00:30:31,920 --> 00:30:35,800
Water was seeping
up out of the ground,
417
00:30:35,840 --> 00:30:41,320
and also there was cracks
developing in the structure itself.
418
00:30:42,880 --> 00:30:47,160
The townsfolk had called it
the dam that could not break,
419
00:30:47,200 --> 00:30:51,920
but fate would prove them
wrong on the worst possible day.
420
00:30:54,120 --> 00:30:57,120
September 30,
1911, is the key date.
421
00:30:57,160 --> 00:30:59,336
The town was celebrating
polling day. Everybody was out.
422
00:30:59,360 --> 00:31:01,640
It was very, very busy.
423
00:31:01,680 --> 00:31:05,920
A week of rainstorms bought
unprecedented amounts of water
424
00:31:05,960 --> 00:31:07,440
into the valley.
425
00:31:09,640 --> 00:31:13,040
The reservoir at that point
was really high as well,
426
00:31:13,080 --> 00:31:14,840
just 2 foot below
the overspill level.
427
00:31:14,880 --> 00:31:16,880
That's incredibly full.
428
00:31:16,920 --> 00:31:19,880
And at that point
catastrophe happened.
429
00:31:21,760 --> 00:31:26,320
The structure over here
moved more or less like a door.
430
00:31:26,360 --> 00:31:31,560
It swung open and allowed
the water to start gushing out.
431
00:31:31,600 --> 00:31:38,480
The wall behind me
also slid about 50 feet.
432
00:31:39,240 --> 00:31:43,080
A torrent of water came
crashing down the valley,
433
00:31:43,120 --> 00:31:47,120
destroying
everything in its path.
434
00:31:47,160 --> 00:31:50,600
When the water came
gushing down the valley,
435
00:31:50,640 --> 00:31:52,560
the first thing it hit
was the paper mill.
436
00:31:52,600 --> 00:31:54,360
It came crashing
through, destroying,
437
00:31:54,400 --> 00:31:56,640
entering almost every room.
438
00:31:56,680 --> 00:32:00,760
And it gathered up
everything in its path,
439
00:32:00,800 --> 00:32:04,080
including all the raw
material, all the tree trunks,
440
00:32:04,120 --> 00:32:07,960
and then it headed downstream
towards the town of Austin.
441
00:32:12,960 --> 00:32:17,280
The east side of the town
got hit worst due to the slope
442
00:32:17,320 --> 00:32:21,280
of the valley, pushed the
wave more in that direction.
443
00:32:21,320 --> 00:32:24,880
And the scene was of
almost sheer devastation.
444
00:32:24,920 --> 00:32:26,680
Almost every building
was submerged.
445
00:32:26,720 --> 00:32:28,136
You could just see the
steeple of the church.
446
00:32:28,160 --> 00:32:29,160
That was the only thing
447
00:32:29,200 --> 00:32:31,600
that you would have recognised
that there was a town there.
448
00:32:32,440 --> 00:32:38,000
In 15 minutes the town turned
from celebration to disaster area.
449
00:32:39,960 --> 00:32:42,600
Almost no-one saw it coming.
450
00:32:44,160 --> 00:32:48,360
Bayless was determined to
get his new, expanded paper mill
451
00:32:48,400 --> 00:32:51,720
up and working, and if that
meant he had to cut a corner,
452
00:32:51,760 --> 00:32:53,280
that's what he did.
453
00:32:55,480 --> 00:32:58,640
The underground wall
designed to protect the dam
454
00:32:58,680 --> 00:33:00,600
was deemed too expensive.
455
00:33:00,640 --> 00:33:03,440
Bayless ordered the
engineer to scrap it,
456
00:33:03,480 --> 00:33:06,280
turning it in to a
ticking time bomb.
457
00:33:09,640 --> 00:33:11,520
The dam is built on the cheap.
458
00:33:12,360 --> 00:33:15,400
It's built to take the
minimum amount of money
459
00:33:15,440 --> 00:33:19,200
to hold back the
maximum amount of water.
460
00:33:19,240 --> 00:33:23,360
The local mill owner started
to say that this is a dam
461
00:33:23,400 --> 00:33:27,120
that was never going to fail,
and he was lying through his teeth.
462
00:33:28,560 --> 00:33:32,680
3,000 residents were in
the town when the water hit,
463
00:33:32,720 --> 00:33:36,640
but the people of Austin had
an unlikely guardian angel.
464
00:33:38,520 --> 00:33:44,200
Luckily the alarm had been raised
by, of all people, Cara Brooks.
465
00:33:46,480 --> 00:33:50,040
The outcast brothel
owner saw the flood coming
466
00:33:50,080 --> 00:33:54,320
and she warned the town,
saving thousands of lives.
467
00:33:55,320 --> 00:34:01,520
The phone call allowed the
people of Austin 15 minutes' warning.
468
00:34:01,560 --> 00:34:03,320
And the town below,
469
00:34:03,360 --> 00:34:10,320
out of that town of 3,000
only 78 die in the disaster.
470
00:34:18,200 --> 00:34:21,800
The history of that flood
is preserved in the Austin
471
00:34:21,840 --> 00:34:24,520
dam memorial park.
472
00:34:24,560 --> 00:34:30,680
In the early 20th century, anybody
could build a dam in Pennsylvania.
473
00:34:30,720 --> 00:34:35,920
There was no regulation, there
was no inspection, and that was
474
00:34:35,960 --> 00:34:42,840
what led to a poorly designed
dam smashing the very people,
475
00:34:42,880 --> 00:34:46,800
the very town it had
been designed to power.
476
00:34:48,360 --> 00:34:50,720
A tragedy like the Austin dam,
477
00:34:50,760 --> 00:34:54,000
like many sort of tragedies
that involve humans,
478
00:34:54,040 --> 00:34:57,040
is there's often a mistake that's
made or a decision that's made
479
00:34:57,080 --> 00:34:59,400
that ends up
leading to something
480
00:34:59,440 --> 00:35:01,496
that you didn't necessarily
predict was going to happen.
481
00:35:01,520 --> 00:35:03,240
And that's exactly
the case in Austin.
482
00:35:03,280 --> 00:35:04,640
Just cutting a few corners,
483
00:35:04,680 --> 00:35:08,280
or not doing the right
engineering mitigation
484
00:35:08,320 --> 00:35:10,000
to stop something
like this happening,
485
00:35:10,040 --> 00:35:11,576
ultimately led to the
destruction of the dam
486
00:35:11,600 --> 00:35:13,520
and to the loss of life.
487
00:35:15,080 --> 00:35:20,040
Today construction is held
to a strict engineering code,
488
00:35:20,080 --> 00:35:24,160
perhaps the greatest legacy
of the Austin dam disaster.
489
00:35:33,000 --> 00:35:35,640
In Ukraine's capital city, Kiev,
490
00:35:35,680 --> 00:35:39,360
a concrete monolith stands
at odds with its surroundings.
491
00:35:44,240 --> 00:35:48,680
As you wander around Kiev, you
can start to see some strange things.
492
00:35:48,720 --> 00:35:51,480
I mean, there's this one
example - can only be described
493
00:35:51,520 --> 00:35:54,240
as like a submarine in a park.
494
00:35:55,600 --> 00:35:58,480
You can actually
walk inside of it
495
00:35:58,520 --> 00:36:01,800
and then you can see
how truly enormous it is.
496
00:36:01,840 --> 00:36:04,400
It's 50m long, 15m across.
497
00:36:04,440 --> 00:36:06,840
The walls are incredibly thick.
498
00:36:06,880 --> 00:36:12,240
My first thought is it's gotta
be a typical example of,
499
00:36:12,280 --> 00:36:17,640
you know, eastern
European Soviet-era kitsch,
500
00:36:17,680 --> 00:36:19,440
but then on the other hand,
501
00:36:19,480 --> 00:36:22,760
if it was kitsch, it would prettier,
you know, it would be painted up,
502
00:36:22,800 --> 00:36:25,040
it would look more
like a submarine.
503
00:36:25,080 --> 00:36:27,840
It must have been
built where it is.
504
00:36:27,880 --> 00:36:30,920
It must have been built for a
purpose, but what could that be?
505
00:36:32,480 --> 00:36:36,000
This object sits on
the bank of the dnieper,
506
00:36:36,040 --> 00:36:38,520
the largest river in Ukraine.
507
00:36:38,560 --> 00:36:44,960
The dnieper is a big, slow-moving,
shallow river, swampy in spots,
508
00:36:45,000 --> 00:36:49,560
and divides the city of Kiev
almost right down the middle.
509
00:36:51,120 --> 00:36:55,920
A larger piece of the
puzzle sits on those swamps.
510
00:36:55,960 --> 00:37:00,280
You can see this weird, kind of
snake-like concrete construction,
511
00:37:00,320 --> 00:37:04,720
which seems to be sinking down
into a swamp. What's that for?
512
00:37:08,720 --> 00:37:12,640
Two sites 11 miles apart
are both clues to one of
513
00:37:12,680 --> 00:37:15,480
the greatest engineering
secrets behind the iron curtain.
514
00:37:19,560 --> 00:37:23,080
Local historian valery lysenko
515
00:37:23,120 --> 00:37:26,040
has been coming to Kiev's
natalka park since he was a child.
516
00:37:29,480 --> 00:37:31,616
Translation: Back then you
couldn't even ask about it.
517
00:37:31,640 --> 00:37:36,240
What was a state secret half a
century ago is now being uncovered.
518
00:37:38,880 --> 00:37:41,560
The locals gave it many
names. Some call it a train.
519
00:37:41,600 --> 00:37:46,040
Some call it a submarine. The most
accurate name would be a caisson.
520
00:37:46,080 --> 00:37:50,640
But not many people
understand what the word means.
521
00:37:50,680 --> 00:37:54,200
The story here
begins 80 years ago
522
00:37:54,240 --> 00:37:57,680
with the river that
runs through the city.
523
00:37:57,720 --> 00:38:01,480
Across this river you have eight
Bridges, and as you can imagine,
524
00:38:01,520 --> 00:38:04,640
these are essential for
keeping goods and people
525
00:38:04,680 --> 00:38:07,000
moving back and
forth across the river.
526
00:38:07,040 --> 00:38:12,600
But 80 years ago they were
recognised as a huge problem.
527
00:38:14,640 --> 00:38:17,120
In 1920, Kiev faced an invasion.
528
00:38:20,320 --> 00:38:25,360
The Poles attacked and took
over Ukraine and captured Kiev.
529
00:38:25,400 --> 00:38:29,000
The red army drove them
out after just a few weeks,
530
00:38:29,040 --> 00:38:32,880
but it made Lenin and
the other Soviet leaders
531
00:38:32,920 --> 00:38:35,520
realise how vulnerable
this area was.
532
00:38:39,720 --> 00:38:42,720
Translation: What did the
Polish army do before the retreat?
533
00:38:42,760 --> 00:38:46,000
The obvious thing - they
destroyed all the Bridges,
534
00:38:46,040 --> 00:38:48,280
the large ones
across the dnieper.
535
00:38:51,640 --> 00:38:54,320
Kiev's Bridges were rebuilt,
536
00:38:54,360 --> 00:38:57,800
but the battle taught them a
valuable lesson for the future.
537
00:38:58,960 --> 00:39:03,600
One thing they'd learned is
that Bridges were very vulnerable.
538
00:39:03,640 --> 00:39:07,920
What if an enemy air force came in
and knocked out these eight Bridges?
539
00:39:07,960 --> 00:39:09,280
They would be helpless.
540
00:39:09,320 --> 00:39:11,400
There'd be no way to
get supplies or troops
541
00:39:11,440 --> 00:39:12,960
back and forth across the river.
542
00:39:13,000 --> 00:39:14,920
They needed a better system.
543
00:39:16,400 --> 00:39:20,680
To protect the city, the Soviets
began work on a secret weapon.
544
00:39:25,160 --> 00:39:28,760
Translation: There are many local
legends that surround this place.
545
00:39:28,800 --> 00:39:32,280
Some say that there's a
train hidden inside the tunnel.
546
00:39:35,240 --> 00:39:38,720
Others claim that the water
doesn't freeze inside the tunnel
547
00:39:38,760 --> 00:39:40,480
because of the radioactivity.
548
00:39:43,960 --> 00:39:46,480
The official name of this
structure was object 1,
549
00:39:46,520 --> 00:39:51,080
but to the people of Kiev
it goes by a different name.
550
00:39:54,440 --> 00:39:56,640
Translation: People call
this place Stalin's subway.
551
00:39:59,440 --> 00:40:02,040
Kiev had learned the hard way
552
00:40:02,080 --> 00:40:04,880
that if an enemy destroyed its
Bridges there was no way to get
553
00:40:04,920 --> 00:40:07,000
supplies across the dnieper.
554
00:40:09,080 --> 00:40:12,040
So here in the swamp
they began digging a tunnel
555
00:40:12,080 --> 00:40:14,000
that would run
underneath the river.
556
00:40:19,920 --> 00:40:22,016
They're gonna be railway tunnels,
but they're gonna have steel plates
557
00:40:22,040 --> 00:40:25,480
that can be lowered into place over
the railway tracks to accommodate
558
00:40:25,520 --> 00:40:27,000
vehicle traffic as well.
559
00:40:29,720 --> 00:40:35,320
Around 1938, construction
started in secret.
560
00:40:37,360 --> 00:40:40,160
Translation: The Soviet union
was obsessed with secrecy.
561
00:40:40,200 --> 00:40:42,040
They liked to hide everything.
562
00:40:43,760 --> 00:40:48,240
Stalin decrees that if
any of these 2,000, 5,000,
563
00:40:48,280 --> 00:40:52,960
10,000, eventually 12,000
workers enlisted in these sites
564
00:40:53,000 --> 00:40:57,320
ever even breath the word 'tunnel'
they'll get ten years in the gulag.
565
00:40:58,960 --> 00:41:03,800
But digging from one side of
the river to the other was too slow.
566
00:41:03,840 --> 00:41:08,320
In the 1930s, Europe was on
the brink of another world war.
567
00:41:08,360 --> 00:41:11,960
Kiev faced invasion again.
568
00:41:12,000 --> 00:41:15,360
To speed up the dig
they used caissons.
569
00:41:18,600 --> 00:41:21,720
80 years ago this
park was a wetland.
570
00:41:21,760 --> 00:41:24,880
The caisson was
constructed on the surface.
571
00:41:26,440 --> 00:41:30,120
And then they would
use high-pressure hoses
572
00:41:30,160 --> 00:41:32,120
to remove the soft
sediment beneath,
573
00:41:32,160 --> 00:41:35,520
thus sinking that tunnel into
the ground beneath the river.
574
00:41:39,080 --> 00:41:41,240
A column of concrete
rings would be built,
575
00:41:41,280 --> 00:41:43,560
creating a pressurised chamber
576
00:41:43,600 --> 00:41:46,880
in which the engineers could
beginning digging in both directions.
577
00:41:50,720 --> 00:41:51,960
Translation: And so this tube,
578
00:41:52,000 --> 00:41:53,536
when it was lowered
to the relevant depth,
579
00:41:53,560 --> 00:41:57,680
they constructed the so-called
manual tunnel-boring machine.
580
00:41:57,720 --> 00:42:02,520
Now it's done mechanically, but
back then it was done manually.
581
00:42:02,560 --> 00:42:06,960
It was a metallic construction
which allowed them to move forwards.
582
00:42:09,040 --> 00:42:11,920
The Soviets hoped this
would turbocharge the dig,
583
00:42:11,960 --> 00:42:15,480
but by August 1941
they had run out of time.
584
00:42:15,520 --> 00:42:18,760
The enemy was at the gates.
585
00:42:24,000 --> 00:42:26,240
Believing they could
hold off the German army,
586
00:42:26,280 --> 00:42:29,960
Soviet top brass ordered
the workers to keep digging,
587
00:42:30,000 --> 00:42:33,320
but the Nazi force
was overwhelming
588
00:42:35,360 --> 00:42:37,920
and Kiev's Bridges
were destroyed again.
589
00:42:39,000 --> 00:42:42,600
They branched south
to try to take Kiev,
590
00:42:42,640 --> 00:42:45,720
'cause it's such a big prize
and it's such a big population.
591
00:42:45,760 --> 00:42:49,960
And they bagged
650,000 red army troops -
592
00:42:50,000 --> 00:42:52,240
one of the greatest
military victories of all time.
593
00:42:53,800 --> 00:42:58,680
When Kiev fell, work on
the tunnels finally stopped.
594
00:43:01,600 --> 00:43:04,560
It's believed that maybe
they got 10% of it done
595
00:43:04,600 --> 00:43:07,920
before the war intervened
and they had to stop.
596
00:43:10,000 --> 00:43:14,000
Translation: They were afraid
to talk about it even years after.
597
00:43:15,680 --> 00:43:18,720
There is a high possibility that
all the prisoners who worked here
598
00:43:18,760 --> 00:43:20,560
were later exterminated.
599
00:43:26,720 --> 00:43:30,520
Attempts were made to restart
the construction, but in 1949
600
00:43:30,560 --> 00:43:35,160
the tunnels were abandoned
and the project covered up.
601
00:43:37,240 --> 00:43:40,400
Translation: Many years after the
war, the subway was built in Kiev.
602
00:43:42,080 --> 00:43:45,000
When this area was no longer
restricted for the people and
603
00:43:45,040 --> 00:43:47,360
they were curious
as to what it was,
604
00:43:48,280 --> 00:43:51,680
only then the newspapers
started writing about it openly.
605
00:43:59,040 --> 00:44:02,040
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