Original subtitles

Narrator: A country village, eerily empty,

Hides a desperate secret.

It must have been heartbreaking.

These were people who had lived In this village for generations.

Narrator: a mysterious tower Battered by the elements

And scarred by war.

The last thing you expect To see is battle damage.

Narrator: a ravaged town, Desolate and forgotten,

Decaying in the desert air.

Decaying in the desert air.

Why on earth would anyone choose To build a town

In such a remote location?

*

Narrator: once, they were some Of the most advanced structures

And facilities on the planet,

At the cutting edge Of design and construction.

Today, they stand abandoned, Contaminated,

And sometimes deadly.

But who built them? And how?

But who built them? And how?

And why were they abandoned?

-- captions by vitac -- Www.Vitac.Com

Captions paid for by Discovery communications

*

*

On the southwest coast Of england

120 miles from Its capital, london,

Is what looks like A country village but isn't.

Is what looks like A country village but isn't.

*

Selwood: the village pond

Looks like any other Village pond in england,

Except there's No wildlife there.

There are no ducks.

It's eerily empty.

*

Nusbacher: The feeling is very much

As though all of the citizens Of this village

Have just been made To disappear at a stroke.

Have just been made To disappear at a stroke.

Narrator: further on, The strangeness continues.

A few hundred yards from The village green is a school

That looks perfectly preserved.

Selwood: The desks are still there.

The books are still there.

It's laid out as if the children Had only been there yesterday.

*

There are still pegs with their Names on out in the corridor.

It feels as if it's a school That's still being used,

But from another age.

But from another age.

*

Price: you get the feeling That it's break time,

And the children have Just gone through the door

And are running about outside, Playing.

Narrator: the church, too, Is in perfect condition,

The rows of seats Freshly polished,

And the stained-glass windows

As immaculate as when They were first installed.

*

And that's not all.

Selwood: In the middle of the village,

Selwood: In the middle of the village,

There's an old white Telephone box,

Which seems something Of an oddity in this day and age

And even more odd is The local story that even though

It was disconnected decades ago, It still rings.

[ telephone rings ]

Narrator: other buildings hint At a darker narrative,

Like the cottages which are Little more than empty shells.

Selwood: and these are in An unusual state of disrepair.

The rooves have gone. The fittings have gone.

The rooves have gone. The fittings have gone.

The windows have gone, But yet at the same time,

These wrecks, these husks, Have been strengthened.

It's almost as though somebody Is about to film a movie

About 1930s england.

Price: why on earth are These buildings like this?

How can you have a little Schoolroom that looks intact,

A church that looks intact, But a lot of ruined cottages?

Narrator: so, what calamity has Happened to leave this village

Narrator: so, what calamity has Happened to leave this village

So completely abandoned?

*

To find out what's behind The mystery,

You need to go back To a single day

That would change the course Of the second world war.

In 1943, britain was at war.

To win, the allies had To invade france

And liberate northwest europe From nazi control.

And liberate northwest europe From nazi control.

Narrator: Code named operation overlord,

It would be the largest Sea-born invasion in history

If they could train Enough troops in time

To drive out the germans.

Selwood: it was a daunting Prospect for the british army.

They had to train vast numbers Of recruits,

Many of whom Hadn't seen combat before,

And they needed space And terrain and environments

That were fitting And that were like

What they were going to face When they arrived in france.

What they were going to face When they arrived in france.

*

Narrator: But what does this have to do

With a small and isolated Village in rural england,

Which seems a world away From the dull thud of gunfire

And chaos of war?

By 1943, the south coast Of england

Had been transformed Into an armed camp.

11 million acres, Much of it farmland,

Became airfields, camps, And training grounds.

Became airfields, camps, And training grounds.

Narrator: And more land was needed,

Especially to train british And american tank crews.

Meigs: if you're training people To operate tanks,

It's not enough to just learn How to drive it.

The really key thing is learning How to shoot it,

So you need long distances To practice firing those shells

Where you're not going to hit Anything you don't want to hit.

Narrator: And this location was ideal.

It was remote and already Close to a firing range,

It was remote and already Close to a firing range,

The village of tyneham.

Bell: The only stumbling block

Was that 200 people lived In the village.

How do you tell them They need to leave their homes,

Their jobs, And their neighbors for good?

*

Narrator: Lynda price, a local historian,

Has spoken to many Of the former residents.

Price: the final blow came In november 1943,

And totally out of the blue, They all got a letter.

They came from a gentleman from Southern command, and on it,

He said that the area was needed For military training,

And they had basically A month to get out.

Meigs: It must have been heartbreaking.

These were people who had lived In this village for generations,

These were people who had lived In this village for generations,

And all of a sudden, To be uprooted

And told you have to leave, And they expected to come back.

You know, that's what's Very poignant about it.

They thought the war would end, And they would come back,

And all would be as it was.

*

Narrator: So, why did the ministry Of defence choose tyneham?

*

Meigs: tyneham was a backwater In a backwater.

I mean, it was Practically off the map.

I mean, it was Practically off the map.

They didn't have electricity.

Most of them didn't even have Indoor plumbing.

People forget how primitive The english countryside

Could be back in that era.

Price: They lived in little cottages,

Most of which were owned By the landowner.

In fact, the whole estate Was owned by the bond family,

And most of these people,

Their lives would've been tied Into the bonds.

*

So, in some senses, It was already a way of life

So, in some senses, It was already a way of life

That was passing, or perhaps For most people, even passed.

*

Narrator: but why did The villagers never return,

And what caused so much damage To tyneham?

*

Narrator: deep in dorset, England, is a ghost village

Which played a critical part In the run-up to d-day.

Its inhabitants were ordered To leave

By the british government,

But why is so much Of the village destroyed

While other parts Seem almost perfectly preserved?

Bell: the army knew that the Church was vulnerable to attack

Bell: the army knew that the Church was vulnerable to attack

In the run-up to d-day.

They removed the heavy oak Pulpit and the pews

And carefully transported The stained glass

To a place of safety.

*

Even if tyneham was abandoned,

It hadn't been Completely forgotten.

But was the villagers' sacrifice Worth it?

*

The u.S. Army Had adopted the area,

And their men and machines were About to invade omaha beach.

And their men and machines were About to invade omaha beach.

*

Selwood: the morning Of the 6th of june, 1944,

Was like no other The war had ever seen.

Over 150,000 english, american, Canadian, and other soldiers

Boarded ships, vessels, barges Of all descriptions

And attacked the french coast.

By the time the battle There was over

And the forces were able To push down into france,

The course of the war Had been changed forever.

The course of the war Had been changed forever.

Bell: D-day was a resounding success,

But the villagers Weren't the only ones

Who had made sacrifices.

Two and a half thousand U.S. Troops,

Many of whom had trained At tyneham,

Lost their lives on omaha beach.

*

Narrator: even after the war,

Tyneham continued to be a vital Training ground for tank crews,

Tyneham continued to be a vital Training ground for tank crews,

So the villagers Were never allowed back.

However, when the guns Stop firing,

The village opens to visitors.

Nusbacher: When I look at tyneham,

What I think about Is how much dislocation,

How much destruction, What a human cost there is

Even to winning a war, Even to noncombatants.

The level of self-sacrifice That was necessary to conduct

The level of self-sacrifice That was necessary to conduct

The kind of total war that was Required to defeat the nazis,

That kind of effort boggles The modern mind.

*

Narrator: 17 miles west of mackinaw city

At the northern tip Of lake michigan

Is a peculiar Tower-like structure.

*

*

A mountain, a rock sticking out Of a vast, cold lake.

*

Meigs: you're out here, really In the middle of nowhere,

And here standing out In the water is this odd,

Kind of Half-broken-down structure

That's kind of crumbling Around the edges.

*

*

Narrator: dazzling sunshine Reflects from the water

Onto this concrete- And-brick structure.

Rubble and dead birds Litter its interior.

*

Bell: It's made up of three sections, Which each contain a mystery.

What was enclosed In the caged top?

And the height Of the tower itself --

Height always creates A vantage point, but for what?

Attack? Defense? A warning?

Attack? Defense? A warning?

Narrator: look closely, and A more sinister picture emerges.

On the walls are large And ominous cracks.

Inside, it's been gutted apart From mysterious metal piping.

And it may be haunted by a man Who met a sudden end.

Bell: the amount of damage On the tower suggests

It's weathered more Than just harsh winters,

It's weathered more Than just harsh winters,

And although the pitted base May well be from crashing waves,

Is there another reason Why great chunks are missing?

*

Nusbacher: When you look at a remote tower

In the middle of nowhere In america,

The last thing you expect To see is battle damage.

*

Narrator: what is the secret To this structure,

Narrator: what is the secret To this structure,

How was it connected To a top-secret super weapon,

And why was it abandoned?

*

Narrator: In the middle of lake michigan

Is a battered Concrete structure.

Why was it abandoned?

*

The roots of this mystery go Back to the importance of trade

To the great lakes In the early 19th century.

Nusbacher: Before america builds railways,

America's arteries Were waterways.

America's arteries Were waterways.

The great lakes and the great Canals are what enables america

To become An industrial powerhouse.

Meigs: The great lakes, together, form,

Really, a massive inland sea

For the united states And canada,

And this waterway was important For shipping goods,

So you had fur pelts, Then later grain, iron ore,

All these products Moving through this area

All these products Moving through this area

Dating from really, you know,

Very early in the history Of north america.

Narrator: the great lakes Connect the midwest

With the atlantic ocean.

They are the largest group Of freshwater lakes on earth

By total area

And are more like inland seas According to chris west,

Who has sailed these waters For most of his life.

West: You think of lake michigan,

West: You think of lake michigan,

We can't see the other side.

You can travel from chicago, Which is the southernmost point,

To the upper peninsula Of michigan,

And that's about 400 or 500 miles long,

So it's a very big area Of water.

*

Narrator: However, it narrows dramatically

At the straits of mackinac, A major shipping lane

Which connects Lake michigan to lake huron.

But it is just 3 1/2 miles wide And whipsawed by currents,

But it is just 3 1/2 miles wide And whipsawed by currents,

Which were often fatal.

*

Meigs: if you're on a ship In the ocean,

And a storm comes up and blows You a few miles off course,

You've got thousands of miles Of ocean around you,

But if that happens In lake michigan,

It's relatively narrow.

There's all these shallows.

You could be on the rocks In just a few minutes.

West: In the straits of mackinac, There's over 80 shipwrecks.

This was the most Dangerous spot.

They were coming up From chicago,

They were coming up From chicago,

And they were making the corner

To go into The straits of mackinac,

And there was this spot That there was 4 feet of water,

So the ships just kept Running aground.

*

Narrator: the u.S. Government Decided it had to intervene

And put a stop To these tragic accidents.

They built The waugoshance lighthouse.

But how do you go about Building a structure

As impressive as this in the Middle of such a massive lake?

As impressive as this in the Middle of such a massive lake?

*

Meigs: you start with A wooden crib structure

That rests on the bottom,

And then you bring out rocks On barges,

And you fill this crib With rocks.

Now you have a stable structure That you can build on top of.

West: it's a feat today To build something like that,

And obviously, back in the day, No power tools.

It was nails and, you know, Big hammers and pulleys,

It was nails and, you know, Big hammers and pulleys,

And so it was Very labor intensive

To do something like that.

Narrator: Finally, the lighthouse Began operating in 1851.

West: it was a lifeline To all of the maritime traffic.

This gave them the road map

Of how to get through The straits of mackinac,

So it was hugely important For the area.

*

Narrator: Its light, looked after by A keeper and his assistant,

Was visible for miles around.

Was visible for miles around.

*

Meigs: the lighthouse keeper's Job was both incredibly boring

And incredibly important At the same time.

You had to keep That light working.

You had to keep it going.

West: It was a pretty remote life.

The light keepers would go out When the ice went out,

Which april-ish.

They would be out there Until november,

And so they're there For essentially seven months

And so they're there For essentially seven months

By themselves, Not seeing another human.

Narrator: light was generated By an oil-burning lamp,

Which required constant Attention and refueling.

When the light was no longer Visible through the mist,

They used a foghorn To warn ships.

It was powered by steam,

And it worked by emitting A low frequency

Through two huge metal pipes.

[ fog horn blows ]

[ fog horn blows ]

West: These are the stove pipes.

They were for the fog signal For the lighthouse.

They were in the fog-signal Building.

You can still see the holes In the ceiling

Of the fog-signal building Where these went through.

So, down these steps brings you Into the basement

Of the living quarters,

And so down here, There would've been boilers

And there would've been supplies For the lighthouse keepers.

Then first floor would've been, You know, living room,

A kitchen, then you go up To the top floors,

A kitchen, then you go up To the top floors,

And that's where the bedrooms Of the keepers would've been.

*

Narrator: one of its keepers was The legendary john herman.

One night, he drunkenly Locked his assistant

Into the lantern room,

Which would have Fatal consequences.

John had had a few,

And john decided he should Lock the door on him.

And john decided he should Lock the door on him.

While all this is was happening, A storm came up.

Unfortunately, john fell off The side of the lighthouse,

And ever since then, He's been the notorious

John herman Of waugoshance lighthouse.

Narrator: The assistant managed to escape,

But john herman disappeared for Good into the inky blackness.

Some wondered -- Was the lighthouse abandoned

Because it was haunted By his ghost?

Meigs: as shipping through The great lakes

Meigs: as shipping through The great lakes

Began to become even heavier, And the boats got bigger,

And they required A deeper draft,

They rode lower in the water,

That channel was No longer adequate.

There was another channel Farther out into the lake

That was much deeper,

So they built another lighthouse To mark that channel,

And the waugoshance lighthouse Became kind of obsolete.

Narrator: in 1912, the keepers Left the lighthouse for good.

Narrator: in 1912, the keepers Left the lighthouse for good.

*

But it wasn't The end of the story.

It played a key part

In the development Of a top-secret super weapon.

*

Narrator: for 30 years, Waugoshance lighthouse

In the middle Of lake michigan rotted away

Until the second world war,

When it took on A completely unexpected role.

Nusbacher: The u.S. Navy starts to develop

A remotely piloted aircraft, A drone,

That can drop bombs And sink japanese warships.

That can drop bombs And sink japanese warships.

These early drones were piloted From another aircraft,

And the operators Were able to steer them

Using radio control looking Through early television cameras

To see what that drone can see.

Narrator: This development program

Was a top-secret project Called stag-1.

Meigs: they needed to practice. Guess what they picked.

Meigs: they needed to practice. Guess what they picked.

Our little lighthouse Sitting out there.

You know, it no longer Was needed as a lighthouse,

But it made a fantastic target.

They bombed the hell out of it.

*

This is one of the remnants Of the bombing run.

You can see the amount of impact That it had

Because this is 1/4-inch-thick boiler plate,

And then you have About 2 1/2, 3 feet of brick.

Used to come out to here, Come out to where

Used to come out to here, Come out to where

The boiler plate is, right here,

So when the bomb hit, Pretty intense impact for it

To be able to take 2 1/2 feet Or 3 feet of brick

And just kind of blow it Out of there.

Narrator: once the war ended,

The lighthouse Served no other function

And was abandoned for good.

*

Today, it's home only To the ghost of john harmon,

Although there are plans To restore it.

Although there are plans To restore it.

Meigs: so, here's this Lighthouse that stood there,

Protecting the ships for so long And then performed

This important service During world war ii,

And let's not let it Just crumble into the lake.

*

Narrator: in the extreme Northwest of chile

Close to the border with peru

Is an apocalyptic creation Of buildings

And other strange objects.

And other strange objects.

*

Meigs: it looks almost like Some kind of film set

For an old western movie.

Everything is somewhat decayed.

Everything is rusty, But it's still standing,

And in other ways, It seems very much untouched.

*

Selwood: There's something unnerving

About the row after row Of houses.

*

Bell: what's really strange Is where the town is located.

Bell: what's really strange Is where the town is located.

It's in the middle of the desert Miles away from anywhere.

Why on earth would anyone choose To build a town

In such a remote location?

*

Narrator: there is a swimming Pool, long empty of water,

A diving board Which will never be used again,

And a ghostly playground

That no longer hears Children's laughter.

That no longer hears Children's laughter.

Meigs: Anytime you see a place that Had been inhabited by humans

And then it looks As if they suddenly left,

It gives you An unsettled feeling.

It gives you a sense of dread.

Maybe something terrible Happened here.

*

Narrator: Once you go beyond the houses, The buildings suddenly change.

*

You see sort of rusted Bits of machinery.

You see sort of rusted Bits of machinery.

There's clearly an engineering Type of feel to it.

Bell: there's a rusted Locomotive and tracks

That lead to what looks like An old factory.

Whatever happened here Was clearly an extensive

And complex industrial Operation, but what was it?

Narrator: What's even more confusing

Is that most of the machinery

Is made by British manufacturers.

Is made by British manufacturers.

So, what was its function,

And how has it ended up In such a remote part of chile?

What you're seeing is The global economy

Dropped down here Into this remote desert.

Why is it all here?

*

Narrator: the clues lie in The rapidly expanding population

In the industrial world towards The end of the 19th century

In the industrial world towards The end of the 19th century

And the need to feed All these extra people.

*

Meigs: for thousands of years, Farmers grew their crops

Using whatever Nutrients were on hand --

The manure from animals Was collected,

And that was good enough For a time,

But in the 19th century, They started to discover

That you could add Additional chemicals to the soil

And make your farms Dramatically more productive.

And make your farms Dramatically more productive.

*

Large deposits of a mineral Were discovered here

In the atacama desert

That would revolutionize Food production

And transform The fortunes of chile.

But what was it?

Meigs: This part of the atacama desert

Is rich in a mineral That then was called saltpeter.

Saltpeter is a name For various forms of nitrate,

And this is a chemical That essentially can work

And this is a chemical That essentially can work

As fertilizer Once you break it down.

Jerram: and there's Very few places on the planet

Where you can actually Find this material,

This particular type of mineral, In effect,

Just lying on the ground, very, Very easy to excavate and mine.

Narrator: saltpeter, Then known as white gold,

Was chile's gold rush.

It accounted For 80% of chile's exports.

The country couldn't survive Without it.

The country couldn't survive Without it.

Jerram: at the time, the Northern part of chile

And southern part of peru

Were actually the main Provider of saltpeter

To the whole of the world.

Small mining villages were Springing up all over the place

To take advantage of this.

Narrator: humberstone was One of those villages.

It was in the desolate Atacama desert

Over 900 miles From chile's capital, santiago,

Over 900 miles From chile's capital, santiago,

And was the center Of its saltpeter production,

But why does it have the very English name of humberstone?

Meigs: james humberstone was An englishman

Who arrived in this area In the late 19th century

With a better way To process the saltpeter.

Selwood: he took over the Nitrate production facilities,

And he did it so well that Within a couple of years,

He doubled the productivity.

*

*

Narrator: patricio diaz valencia Is director of investigations

At humberstone And an expert on its history.

Translator: The people who used to work here Came from different countries.

They were bolivian.

They were argentinean.

They were chilean.

They all came together in this Area and created a new society.

*

Narrator: Humberstone was a company town.

Narrator: Humberstone was a company town.

The 3,700 men, Women, and children

Who lived there Owned nothing,

Not even their houses Or furniture.

But these conditions Were common in chile,

And violent workers' Strikes were not unknown.

Paid in tokens That could only be exchanged

In the general store,

How content were Humberstone's residents?

*

Translator: Tokens were paid according To the effort invested.

Translator: Tokens were paid according To the effort invested.

There was a minimum.

For example, in order to receive The minimum wage

So they could live,

They had to load at least Two wagons every day.

This took approximately 12 hours each day.

*

Narrator: was the town abandoned Because life became too hard,

Or was there A more sinister reason?

Or was there A more sinister reason?

*

Narrator: in chile's Atacama desert is humberstone,

The epicenter of the country's Vital saltpeter production.

*

Bell: digging for saltpeter Was a grueling business.

The workers were outside all day In the blistered sun

With little water or shade.

Meigs: they scrape up This powdery substance

Meigs: they scrape up This powdery substance

Off the desert floor, Crush it, boil it,

And then they went through A series of processes

That would separate out The valuable parts

Of these compounds From everything else.

Narrator: all day long, crushers Ground the nitrate-rich crust

Of the desert And boilers dissolved it,

Forming a toxic soup Of chemicals,

Until they eventually Extracted the nitrate.

*

Meigs: can you imagine what a Brutal job this must have been

Meigs: can you imagine what a Brutal job this must have been

Working in one of the hottest, Driest places,

Boiling these nasty, You know, chemicals all day?

Selwood: the chimneys would've Been billowing black smoke,

The boilers would've been Seeping out hot steam,

And the sheer danger of the work Of mining was ever-present.

*

Narrator: was there An industrial accident

Narrator: was there An industrial accident

Or some other calamity

Which caused the town To be abandoned?

Selwood: Two things killed humberstone -- War and technology.

During world war I,

The british blockaded The shipments of saltpeter

From chile going to germany, And at the same time,

German scientists Developed synthetic ways

Of creating fertilizer

And so had no need To have saltpeter shipped

From the other side Of the planet.

Narrator: The industry collapsed, Along with life at humberstone.

Narrator: The industry collapsed, Along with life at humberstone.

The houses and factories Were abandoned,

And the people left Or were left to die.

No one has lived or worked Here for half a century.

*

Selwood: the town's survival is A freak economic accident.

After the last inhabitant left, It was sold to a developer,

But he went bust Before he was able

To do anything with the town,

To strip out all the bits That he was going to sell.

To strip out all the bits That he was going to sell.

As a result, it's been preserved By the dry desert air

And is now a united nations World heritage site.

Jerram: you can see exactly How these people lived.

You see, also, How their fortunes

Were on the flick of a coin

Because once the need For that mining left, they left,

But they left Everything in place.

*

*

Narrator: In southeast england,

Beneath the busy streets Of its capital, london,

Lies a secret, Subterranean world.

*

Jerram: there's actually A hidden system,

A hidden system of tunnels That you don't get to see.

They're there.

What are they, And what were they used for?

It looks like these things Haven't been used

It looks like these things Haven't been used

For quite some time.

Agrawal: you've got stalactites Hanging from the ceiling,

You've got bits of water Flowing along the bottom,

And then there's water Kind of dripping down

The side of the tunnel, As well,

So it's quite A spooky place to be.

*

Meigs: it looks like A little hobbit railroad.

*

The track is very narrow, Only about 2 feet across.

The ceilings are very low,

The ceilings are very low,

So it's really Kind of mysterious.

Who made these little Miniaturized tunnels?

Narrator: Could these twisting tracks

Stretching into the distance Provide a clue?

Jerram: As you move aren't the tunnels,

You suddenly come into Open spaces, actual stations.

So, there are stations In these tunnel networks.

Narrator: Away from the stations,

There are more signs Of activity, but from long ago.

There are more signs Of activity, but from long ago.

*

There's empty filing cabinets.

There's desks with old, Broken telephones on them.

When you see overalls Draped over things,

Your telephones, Kiosks, everything,

It's almost as though this place Was abandoned fairly quickly.

It seems like there wasn't Enough time

To remove everything And clear out when you left.

Meigs: if it was an area That was more accessible,

Meigs: if it was an area That was more accessible,

You know, scavengers Would've come in,

People might have come in And taken stuff,

You'd see graffiti,

But because these tunnels Were really quite deep,

They really did not get Picked over or stripped.

Narrator: What was this place,

Who worked here, and why Has it been left to molder?

*

In the early 20th century,

People communicated Through letters,

People communicated Through letters,

And their smooth delivery Was critical,

Particularly in london, The country's financial hub.

*

Meigs: so, if you have A legal contractor,

You have a policy, You have a negotiation,

Being able to move Those documents

Around the city quickly Was part of the key

To london's Economic dominance.

Narrator: but in 1909, It could take several hours

To deliver mail from one part Of the city to another.

To deliver mail from one part Of the city to another.

Something had to be done.

Agrawal: if you think about The streets of london back then,

They were really busy.

There were horse carriages And animals

And all sorts of things Happening up at street level,

So to find somewhere Where they could very quickly

And efficiently move really Important documents around,

They had to go underground.

Narrator: and this was the Result -- 22 miles of track

Stretching 6 miles Across london --

Stretching 6 miles Across london --

The mail rail.

*

At the time, It was a revolutionary

Piece of engineering,

So why has it been abandoned And left to decay?

*

Narrator: concealed beneath London's teeming streets

Is the mail rail.

Its construction Was a daunting task.

*

London is really built On a big swamp, an estuary,

And so as a result,

When you start Digging underground,

It's very damp, muddy, Sandy, silty.

Jerram: and they, in fact, Encountered one of the largest

Jerram: and they, in fact, Encountered one of the largest

Subterranean rivers in the area Called the fleet river,

And so water ingressing Into the tunnels

Was a big problem During engineering.

Narrator: ray modlesworth, One of the last engineers here,

Is well aware of The dangers they faced.

There were incidences when They were digging the tunnels,

And many workers had to run For their lives

To get away from the water Bursting through.

Narrator: but the project was Too important to abandon.

Narrator: but the project was Too important to abandon.

*

Agrawal: one of the things They did was to add air locks,

And then they pushed air Into those sections of tunnel

To keep the water out.

They also used floodgates In portions of the tunnel,

So if water did come in,

They could isolate Those sections of tunnel,

Which were full of water,

And then quickly Pump the water out.

Narrator: in 1927, the mail rail Was finally ready for service,

Narrator: in 1927, the mail rail Was finally ready for service,

The only one of its kind In the world.

Meigs: these trains Do not have drivers.

They don't have engineers, So it's really the first

Driverless-electrical-vehicle System in the world.

The system meant they could Speed mail right across london,

Avoiding the congestion On the streets above.

*

*

Narrator: 22 miles of track Connected paddington

With white chapel station

And linked up six other Sorting offices along the way.

A conveyor belt Linked the tunnels

To the mainline platforms at Liverpool street and paddington.

*

Ray remembers trying to keep This complicated system working,

Which processed up To 4 million letters a day.

Modlesworth: you had to work Under a lot of time pressure

Modlesworth: you had to work Under a lot of time pressure

Because once the trains stopped,

They would start backing away All the way around the system,

And the whole rail network Would grind to a halt.

*

This is battery loco number two, Nicknamed the banana

Because of its bright Yellow color scheme,

Which we used these locos When the railway was shut down

To retrieve broken down trains

And do maintenance work On the track in the weekends.

This was built in 1927.

It's still serviceable.

Sturdy base, it's built By english electric,

Sturdy base, it's built By english electric,

Weighs 7 1/1 tons,

And I must have jumped in And out of that cab

About 1,000 times During my career.

*

Narrator: while the engineers Kept the mail rail running,

The threat of flooding Was always present.

This is one Of the four floodgates

Installed to seal off The main tunnel from the station

In case there was a deadly flood

In case there was a deadly flood

And we needed To pump the water out.

It was mechanical in operation,

So it could be relied to operate In any circumstances.

*

Very sturdy.

*

The mail rail trundled Beneath the streets

Of central london until 2003.

So, why is it now deserted?

Was there an industrial Accident?

Was there an industrial Accident?

Did the floodgates fail

And an a catastrophic Flood engulf the tunnels?

Jerram: it was delivering mail Around london

For some 80-odd years, And its demise, well,

We had the internet age.

We were no longer Sending so many letters.

There was also a much better Infrastructure above ground,

So it really lost Its economic importance.

*

*

Modlesworth: On the last day of service,

I was one of the engineers On duty that day,

And it was my job to shut down The power at mount pleasant.

*

It was historic.

We had a job to do, But we all know what it meant.

It was coming to the end Of an era after 76 years.

Very sad.

*

Narrator: Today, part of the track

Still lives on As a tourist ride and museum.

Still lives on As a tourist ride and museum.

I think that that's just Fantastic to preserve

That really important legacy.

*

And the real beauty Of the royal mail

Underground deliver system Was that it was happening

With many people Being completely unaware

That it was there.

We didn't really know That letters were actually

Moving beneath our feet.