Original subtitles

Narrator: A CLANDESTINE COASTAL DEFENSE NOW EXPOSED

BY VANISHING ATLANTIC SAND DUNES...

IT MIGHT SEEM LIKE THE AMERICANS WERE BEING PARANOID.

I MEAN, WHO'S GONNA ATTACK THE U.S.

ON THE DELAWARE COAST, THE JERSEY SHORE?

BUT IN FACT, AMERICA WAS ATTACKED.

Narrator: ...THE STRANDED REMAINS OF A TOWN

THAT ONCE APPEARED TO HAVE IT ALL...

THEY MUST HAVE FELT LIKE THEY HAD FOUND A GARDEN OF EDEN,

AN OASIS IN THIS DRY ZONE.

AN OASIS IN THIS DRY ZONE.

BUT SOMEONE WITH MORE AUTHORITY WANTED IT FOR THEMSELVES.

Narrator: RUINS ON A TRANQUIL JAPANESE BAY

WITH AN INFAMOUS TECHNOLOGY AT THEIR HEART.

WERE THEY DOING SOMETHING SECRET?

WERE THEY DOING SOMETHING DANGEROUS?

THERE ARE STORIES HERE IN THESE BUILDINGS.

Narrator: ...AND A NETWORK OF ABANDONED STRUCTURES

THAT COVER AN ENTIRE COUNTRY.

IT LOOKS AS THOUGH THIS LAND HAS BEEN CARPET-BOMBED

WITH THESE MYSTERIOUS-LOOKING DOMES.

WITH THESE MYSTERIOUS-LOOKING DOMES.

YOU FIND THEM IN THE ROADSIDES, IN CHURCHYARDS,

IN PEOPLE'S GARDENS.

YOU HAVE TO WONDER WHO OR WHAT

WERE THEY PROTECTING THEMSELVES FROM.

Narrator: DECAYING RELICS,

RUINS OF LOST WORLDS,

FORGED THROUGH YEARS OF TOIL,

NOW HAUNTED BY THE PAST,

THEIR SECRETS WAITING TO BE REVEALED.

THEIR SECRETS WAITING TO BE REVEALED.

-- Captions by VITAC -- www.vitac.com

CAPTIONS PAID FOR BY DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS

ALBANIA --

A COUNTRY AT THE EDGE OF MODERN-DAY EUROPE,

A LAND COVERED IN PECULIAR, MUSHROOM-SHAPED STRUCTURES.

Barratt: THERE ARE THESE WEIRD, LITTLE CONSTRUCTIONS

Barratt: THERE ARE THESE WEIRD, LITTLE CONSTRUCTIONS

AND THEY'RE ALL OVER THE PLACE.

THERE'S NO PATTERN TO IT. THERE'S NO RESTRICTION TO THEM.

Dr. Corum: IT IS A BIZARRE SITUATION, WHERE YOU HAVE EVERY VILLAGE

AND EVERY FIELD, ALMOST, IS COVERED WITH THESE THINGS.

THEY'RE CARVED INTO MOUNTAIN SIDES

AND SPREAD ALONG THE COAST LOOKING OUT TO SEA.

THEY'RE EVERYWHERE.

LIKE, I MEAN, EVERYWHERE.

LIKE, I MEAN, EVERYWHERE.

Narrator: THESE DIMINUTIVE STRUCTURES

APPEAR TO BE FORTIFIED.

Bell: THE SHEER VOLUME AND POSITIONING OF THEM

TELLS YOU THAT A HUGE FORCE OR POPULATION

WAS EXPECTED TO MOBILIZE AND DEFEND THIS LAND

Barratt: EVERY NOW AND AGAIN, YOU COME ACROSS A BIGGER STRUCTURE,

ONE WITH MORE ROOMS, MORE DEFENSIVE CAPABILITY.

SOMEHOW, THERE MUST BE A SYSTEM.

THERE MUST BE A WAY THAT EVERYTHING IS LINKED.

Narrator: ALBANIA IS RIDDLED WITH THESE DEFENSIVE STRUCTURES.

Narrator: ALBANIA IS RIDDLED WITH THESE DEFENSIVE STRUCTURES.

BUT A POSTAPOCALYPTIC LANDSCAPE AT THE HEART OF THIS NATION

SUGGESTS THE WORST-CASE SCENARIO MAY HAVE COME TO PASS.

Caushi: A VAST COMPLEX COVERING AN AREA

THAT GOES AS FAR AS THE EYES CAN SEE --

ALL THAT REMAINS IS JUST A GHOST TOWN.

THIS PLACE WOULDN'T LOOK OUT OF SORTS IN THE DYSTOPIAN WORLD

OF MAD MAX OR BLADE RUNNER.

Narrator: SO, WHAT HAPPENED BEHIND THE HEAVY IRON CURTAIN

Narrator: SO, WHAT HAPPENED BEHIND THE HEAVY IRON CURTAIN

THAT ONCE SHROUDED ALBANIA?

ELTON CAUSHI, A LOCAL HISTORIAN AND TOUR GUIDE, GREW UP HERE.

THE UBIQUITOUS STRUCTURES MADE UNUSUAL PLAYGROUNDS.

YOU COULD FIND THEM EVERYWHERE.

IT WAS GREAT TO PLAY OUTSIDE, ACTUALLY.

Narrator: BUT THERE WAS A SERIOUS SIDE TO THEM.

Caushi: THIS IS WHAT WE CALL MUSHROOM BUNKERS.

HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF THESE

HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF THESE

WERE BUILT ALL AROUND THE COUNTRY,

MAINLY FOCUSING ON THE COASTAL AREAS,

SINCE D-DAY STYLE OF ATTACK WAS EXPECTED TO COME THIS WAY.

Narrator: THROUGHOUT THE 1970s, THE ALBANIAN POPULATION

WAS READY TO MOBILIZE AT A MOMENT'S NOTICE

AND USE THE MUSHROOM BUNKERS TO DEFEND THE NATION

AGAINST THE MOST TERRIFYING ATTACKS.

THERE WAS THIS CONSTANT, GENUINE FEAR OF THE ATTACK

THERE WAS THIS CONSTANT, GENUINE FEAR OF THE ATTACK

AND I DO REMEMBER THE TRAININGS THAT THEY USED TO GIVE US --

THE ADULTS THROWING CHLORIUM ALL AROUND THE NEIGHBORHOOD,

PEOPLE CLOSING OFF THE LIGHTS IN THE HOME,

AND FAMILIES BEING FORCED INTO SOME SORT OF MILITARY ACTION

AND FINDING SHELTER IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD'S BUNKER,

WHERE WE WERE SUPPOSED TO SURVIVE

IN THE CASE OF AN EVENTUAL BACTERIOLOGICAL ATTACK.

IN THE CASE OF AN EVENTUAL BACTERIOLOGICAL ATTACK.

IMAGINE GROWING UP AMONGST ALL THIS PARANOIA --

THE CONSTANT DRILLS,

CONSTANT SENSE OF THREAT,

AN ENEMY THAT MIGHT ATTACK AT ANY MOMENT.

Narrator: THE ALBANIAN FEAR OF INVASION

DATES BACK TO THE END OF THE SECOND WORLD WAR.

IN 1945, MUCH OF EUROPE LAY IN ASHES,

TORN APART BY SIX YEARS OF TOTAL WAR.

ALBANIA HAD SUFFERED OCCUPATION

BOTH BY FASCIST ITALY AND NAZI GERMANY.

BOTH BY FASCIST ITALY AND NAZI GERMANY.

Bell: IN MANY WAYS, THE CRUSHING DEFEAT AND HUMILIATION

IN WORLD WAR II

PROFOUNDLY INFLUENCED THE DIRECTION

THE COUNTRY WOULD TAKE IN THE POST-WAR ERA.

Narrator: OUT OF THE FIGHT FOR INDEPENDENCE,

ONE MAN EMERGED AS THE COUNTRY'S DICTATOR -- ENVER HOXHA.

DESPITE HAVING ENJOYED SUPPORT FROM BRITISH

AND AMERICAN INTELLIGENCE SERVICES DURING THE WAR,

HOXHA, A STAUNCH COMMUNIST,

QUICKLY ALIGNED HIMSELF WITH THE SOVIET UNION.

QUICKLY ALIGNED HIMSELF WITH THE SOVIET UNION.

HOXHA IDEALIZED JOSEPH STALIN.

IN FACT, THE ALBANIAN COMMUNISTS --

THEY WERE THE ONLY COMMUNIST GROUPS

THAT OPENLY SUPPORTED STALIN AFTER HIS FALL FROM GRACE.

AND LIKE STALIN, HE KEPT A BRUTAL GRIP ON POWER.

THE LOCAL INTELLECTUALS, MAINLY THE EDUCATED PEOPLE --

IT'S THE ONES HE CONSIDERED TO BE THE WORST ENEMIES,

IT'S THE ONES HE CONSIDERED TO BE THE WORST ENEMIES,

AND THE PEOPLE WHICH WERE MOST DANGEROUS TO HIS BEING

IN POWER.

THE METHODS WERE NOT VERY ORTHODOX, AND HE DIDN'T

HESITATE TO CUT ANY THROAT WHICH WAS IN FRONT OF HIM.

Narrator: HOXHA'S DOGMATIC ATTACHMENT TO STALIN

MEANT THAT, WHEN THE SOVIET DICTATOR DIED IN 1953,

HE SEVERED TIES WITH HIS SUCCESSOR

THE MORE PRAGMATIC NIKITA KHRUSHCHEV.

Dr. Corum: KHRUSHCHEV WANTED TO LIGHTEN THE HEAVY EFFECTS

Dr. Corum: KHRUSHCHEV WANTED TO LIGHTEN THE HEAVY EFFECTS

OF THE STALIN REIGN.

AND HOXHA OF ALBANIA THOUGHT

THAT THIS WAS BETRAYING THE TRUE COMMUNIST IDEAL.

Narrator: HOXHA COULD NOW ADD THE USSR

TO HIS LONG LIST OF ENEMIES.

IN HIS INCREASING ISOLATION,

HOXHA'S FEAR OF INVASION MOUNTED,

AND HIS PARANOIA PUSHED HIM

TO INITIATE HIS BUNKERIZATION PROGRAM.

THE BUNKERIZATION OF ALBANIA

WAS BUILT ON THIS SIEGE MENTALITY.

THE IDEA THAT ENEMIES ARE EVERYWHERE,

READY TO STRIKE AT ANY TIME.

Narrator: THERE COULD BE AS MANY AS 700,000 BUNKERS IN ALBANIA.

THAT'S ONE FOR EVERY FOUR PEOPLE.

HOXHA PRESERVED THE BIGGEST FOR HIMSELF

AND IT'S FOUND BENEATH THE CAPITAL, TIRANA.

Caushi: NOW WE'RE IN A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT KIND OF BUNKER.

THIS MONSTER GOING FIVE FLOORS UNDER THE GROUND,

BEING EQUIPPED WITH 106 ROOMS,

WAS SUPPOSED TO PROTECT HOXHA AND THE COMMUNIST LEADERS.

AND THAT INCLUDED ALSO THE WHOLE DIRECTORS OF THE ARMY.

THEY NEEDED TO BE SECURED HERE AGAINST ANY NUCLEAR,

CHEMICAL, OR BACTERIOLOGICAL ATTACK.

CHEMICAL, OR BACTERIOLOGICAL ATTACK.

Narrator: IT WAS A MONUMENTAL UNDERTAKING,

AND THE TINY ALBANIAN NATION WASN'T ABLE TO COMPLETE

HOXHA'S MANIACAL BUNKERIZATION PROGRAM ALONE.

Bell: EVERY NOW AND AGAIN, ON SOME OF THE INSTRUMENTS

DEEP IN THESE BUNKERS, YOU CATCH A GLIMPSE OF A CLUE

THAT TELLS YOU WHO WAS BEHIND ALL THIS.

Narrator: HOXHA HAD GOT INTO BED WITH A DANGEROUS ALLY.

Dr. Corum: HOXHA WAS A TRUE IDEOLOGUE AND A TRUE BELIEVER,

Dr. Corum: HOXHA WAS A TRUE IDEOLOGUE AND A TRUE BELIEVER,

AND SO HE TURNED TO A PURER FORM OF COMMUNISM

WHICH THEY SAW IN MAO'S CHINA.

Narrator: RELATIONS WITH OTHER EASTERN-BLOC NATIONS

WERE INCREASINGLY STRAINED.

AND HOXHA'S ALLIANCE WITH CHINA WAS NOT WELL-RECEIVED.

DOES THIS OMINOUS-LOOKING WASTELAND MEAN

HOXHA WAS NOT PARANOID AFTER ALL?

*

Narrator: DURING THE 1970s,

ALBANIA STEPPED UP BUNKER PRODUCTION

TO STAVE OFF THE PERCEIVED THREAT OF INVASION.

BY NOW, THE PARANOID LEADER, ENVER HOXHA,

HAD CONVINCED HIS NATION THAT NEIGHBORS SUCH AS ITALY,

GREECE, OR YUGOSLAVIA,

AS WELL AS NUCLEAR POWERS, SUCH AS AMERICA

AND THE SOVIET UNION, WERE ON THE BRINK OF ATTACKING THEM.

AND THE SOVIET UNION, WERE ON THE BRINK OF ATTACKING THEM.

THEIR ONLY ALLY, CHINA,

POURED INDUSTRIAL RESOURCES INTO THE SMALL COUNTRY.

AT ITS CORE WAS THIS --

THE METALLURGICAL FACTORY COMPLEX AT ELBASAN.

Bell: MORE THAN 500 OF THESE GIANT BUILDINGS WERE CONSTRUCTED,

ACCOMPANIED ALL THE INFRASTRUCTURE

A COMPLEX OF THIS SCALE WOULD REQUIRE.

Narrator: GIANT MOLDS ALLOWED PREFABRICATED BUNKER PARTS

Narrator: GIANT MOLDS ALLOWED PREFABRICATED BUNKER PARTS

TO BE FITTED TOGETHER LIKE A JIGSAW.

YOU CAN BARELY IMAGINE THE AMOUNT OF NOISE AND SMOKE

THAT MUST HAVE EMANATED FROM THIS PLACE.

Barratt: FRAMED BY THESE BEAUTIFUL MOUNTAINS

IN THE BACKGROUND, YOU HAVE A MAN-MADE

ENVIRONMENTAL DISASTER ZONE --

THERE'S CHIMNEYS, THERE'S FACTORIES,

THERE'S BUILDINGS IN ALL SORTS OF DIFFERENT STATES OF REPAIR.

Narrator: THE METAL AND CONCRETE FACTORIES IN THE INDUSTRIAL ZONE

SPED UP THE PRODUCTION OF BUNKERS,

WHICH WERE ROLLED OUT ACROSS THE NATION.

Barratt: BUT AT THE SAME TIME, THE HOUSING WAS NEGLECTED,

THE REST OF THE INFRASTRUCTURE IN THE COUNTRY

WAS FALLING BEHIND --

ALL AT THE EXPENSE OF THE BUNKERIZATION PROGRAM.

Narrator: DOMESTIC ISSUES WERE SOON EXACERBATED

BY INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENTS

WHICH THREATENED HOXHA'S RIGID ALLEGIANCE

TO COMMUNIST DOCTRINE.

TO COMMUNIST DOCTRINE.

FIRST KISSINGER, THEN PRESIDENT NIXON

WERE ALLOWED TO VISIT CHINA.

THAT WAS ALL TOO MUCH FOR HOXHA,

AND TO HIM, A SIGN OF CHINA'S NEW, REVISIONIST DIRECTION.

Narrator: CHAIRMAN MAO DIED IN 1976,

AND THAWING RELATIONS CULMINATED

WITH THE CHINESE BREAKING OFF TRADE

WITH ALBANIA TWO YEARS LATER.

Bell: FIRST IT WAS THE SOVIETS, THEN THE CHINESE.

HE WAS FALLING OUT WITH THE VERY POWERHOUSES

HE WAS FALLING OUT WITH THE VERY POWERHOUSES

THAT WERE BANKROLLING ALBANIA.

Caushi: HE PRACTICALLY TRANSFORMED ALBANIA

INTO WHAT NORTH KOREA STANDS TODAY TO THE WORLD.

THIS WAS THE MOST ISOLATED COUNTRY IN EUROPE.

Narrator: AFTER HOXHA'S DEATH IN 1985, THE REGIME CLUNG ON,

BUT THE PEOPLE WERE GETTING WIND OF COMMUNIST COLLAPSE

ACROSS EASTERN EUROPE.

FIRST, YOU HAD HUNGER STRIKES BY STUDENTS,

THEN THE PEOPLE ROSE UP AND TOOK TO THE STREETS.

THEN THE PEOPLE ROSE UP AND TOOK TO THE STREETS.

THEY'D HAD ENOUGH.

Narrator: ALBANIA'S MARXIST-LENINIST GOVERNMENT

COLLAPSED IN 1991,

LEAVING BEHIND THIS BIZARRE LEGACY --

HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF BUNKERS LEFT TO DECAY.

HOXHA'S BUNKERIZATION PROGRAM HAS LEFT

AN INDELIBLE MARK ON MODERN ALBANIA.

THE METALLURGICAL FACTORY

AT ELBASAN HAS A TOXIC AND DEADLY LEGACY.

AT ELBASAN HAS A TOXIC AND DEADLY LEGACY.

THIS COMPLEX HAS HAD A DISASTROUS IMPACT ON

THE ENVIRONMENT,

AND THE HUMAN COST HAS BEEN TERRIFYING.

BABIES BORN WITH DEFORMITIES, CANCER AND DISEASES.

Narrator: BUT MANY BUNKERS ARE NOW

BEING REPURPOSED FOR A POSITIVE FUTURE.

ALBANIA IS TRYING TO BUILD THIS FUTURE AND IMAGE

AS A TOURISM DESTINATION AND IS DOING QUITE A GOOD JOB.

AS A TOURISM DESTINATION AND IS DOING QUITE A GOOD JOB.

EVENTUALLY, THEY WILL HOST CAPITALIST VISITORS,

AND THERE WILL BE NO BETTER PUNISHMENT FOR THE DICTATORSHIP.

Narrator: AND ALBANIA IS NOW LOOKING OUTWARDS AS

A CANDIDATE TO JOIN THE EUROPEAN UNION.

ALBANIA, FOR SURE, IS VERY

ENTHUSIASTIC ABOUT INTEGRATING THE EU.

THIS IS THE BIG BROTHER THAT WE'VE PROBABLY BEING DREAMING,

AND IT'S FOR US LIKE GOING BACK HOME SOMEHOW.

BEING A MEMBER OF THE BIG EUROPEAN FAMILY IS LIKE REALLY

BEING A MEMBER OF THE BIG EUROPEAN FAMILY IS LIKE REALLY

FINDING OUT THE PARENTS

WHICH WE LOST MANY CENTURIES AGO.

Narrator: ON AMERICA'S EASTERN SEABOARD

AMID DELAWARE'S DRIFTING SAND DUNES,

A COLLECTION OF COASTAL STRUCTURES

STARE OUT ACROSS THE ATLANTIC.

THE EAST COAST OF THE U.S. IS FAMOUS FOR BEAUTIFUL BEACHES.

YOU HAVE PEOPLE PICNICKING, YOU HAVE SURF CRASHING.

YOU HAVE PEOPLE PICNICKING, YOU HAVE SURF CRASHING.

YOU COULD JUST BE OUT FOR A DAY ON THE BEACH.

Bell: THEN, IN AMONGST THE DUNES

AND THE SCRUB PINES, YOU CATCH GLIMPSES OF SOMETHING

THAT LOOKS COMPLETELY OUT OF PLACE.

Narrator: CLOSER INSPECTION REVEALS A CLEAR MILITARY PURPOSE.

YOU SEE REMNANTS OF BUNKERS AND THESE CONCRETE TOWERS.

IT'S REALLY INCONGRUOUS BECAUSE YOU'RE ON THIS LOVELY BEACH,

IT'S REALLY INCONGRUOUS BECAUSE YOU'RE ON THIS LOVELY BEACH,

WHERE, AS FAR AS MOST OF US KNOW,

THERE'S NEVER BEEN ANY KIND OF A WAR.

Narrator: YET THERE ARE DISTINCT SIGNS THAT HEAVY ARTILLERY

WAS ONCE DEPLOYED HERE.

Bell: THIS LONG, DARK CORRIDOR CUTS

THROUGH THE CENTER OF THIS HUGE BUNKER.

AND OLD, RUSTY CHAINS HANG FROM RAILS.

THIS WAS CLEARLY USED

FOR HOISTING SOMETHING OF SIGNIFICANT WEIGHT.

Narrator: OUTSIDE, ABANDONED WEAPONRY STILL LURKS BEHIND THE DUNES.

AND LIKE EVERYTHING ELSE AT THIS SITE,

THESE GUNS ARE ORIENTED OUT TO SEA.

*

BUT WHO WERE THEY AFRAID OF?

WHO WERE THEY EXPECTING TO INVADE THE EASTERN SEABOARD?

Meigs: IT MIGHT SEEM LIKE THE AMERICANS WERE BEING PARANOID.

I MEAN, WHO'S GONNA ATTACK THE U.S.

ON THE DELAWARE COAST, THE JERSEY SHORE?

ON THE DELAWARE COAST, THE JERSEY SHORE?

Narrator: IN FACT, AN INVASION DID COME.

WOULD THIS FACILITY BE READY TO MEET THE CHALLENGE?

*

Narrator: THE DESOLATE RELICS THAT CROWD THIS BLUSTERY OUTPOST

DATE BACK TO THE LATE 1930s.

FEW AMERICANS KNOW WHAT WENT ON HERE.

FOR A LONG TIME, THEIR USE AND FUNCTION

WAS KEPT COMPLETELY CONFIDENTIAL.

Narrator: TODAY, HISTORIANS ARE KEEN TO PRESERVE

THESE MILITARY MONUMENTS.

THESE MILITARY MONUMENTS.

LEADING THE CHARGE IS DR. GARY WRAY.

WHEN THE MILITARY BUILT THIS BASE,

THIS PLACE BECAME SUPER SECRET.

SO, YOU WEREN'T ALLOWED ON THE BEACH.

MILITARY PUT THE WORD OUT THAT NOTHING WAS TO BE TALKED ABOUT.

SO, WHAT YOU'RE LOOKING AT HERE

IS AMERICA'S FIRST HOMELAND SECURITY.

Narrator: THIS CLANDESTINE MILITARY COMPLEX IS FORT MILES.

IT GUARDS THE MOUTH OF THE DELAWARE RIVER.

IT GUARDS THE MOUTH OF THE DELAWARE RIVER.

WE DON'T USUALLY THINK OF THE DELAWARE

AS ONE OF AMERICA'S MAJOR RIVERS FOR SHIPPING,

BUT IT DOES LEAD

TO A VERY IMPORTANT HARBOR IN PHILADELPHIA.

Narrator: A NAVAL SHIPYARD, AS WELL AS ARSENALS AND REFINERIES

PREPARING HIGH-OCTANE FUEL FOR COMBAT AIRCRAFT

WERE ALL LOCATED UPRIVER.

THIS WAS A KEY DEFENSE PLACE ON THE EAST COAST.

THIS WATER BEHIND ME WAS JUST SATURATED WITH TANKERS.

SO, IF A FOREIGN POWER CAN GET IN AND STOP THE TRAFFIC

SO, IF A FOREIGN POWER CAN GET IN AND STOP THE TRAFFIC

IN AND OUT OF DELAWARE BAY,

THEY'VE TAKEN A GREAT STEP TOWARD VICTORY.

Narrator: THE U.S. MILITARY TOOK OVER THIS 5,000-ACRE SITE

IN 1938,

WHEN THE FIRST LARGE ARTILLERY PIECES ARRIVED,

JUST OVER A YEAR BEFORE THE SECOND WORLD WAR

BROKE OUT IN EUROPE.

HITLER FANTASIZED ABOUT SEEING NEW YORK CITY

ENGULFED IN FLAMES.

Meigs: HITLER USED TO TALK ABOUT HIS DREAMS OF SEEING

Meigs: HITLER USED TO TALK ABOUT HIS DREAMS OF SEEING

GERMAN LONG-RANGE BOMBERS ATTACKING OUR COAST.

ONE OF HIS MORE OVER-THE-TOP CONCEPTS WAS THAT

HE MIGHT ACTUALLY BE ABLE TO DO A LAND INVASION OF THE U.S.

Dr. Wray: THE THREAT WAS REAL.

WE THOUGHT THE GERMANS WERE COMING OVER THE HORIZON,

AND WE WERE PREPARING FOR THEM.

Narrator: THE WAY THIS SITE IS CONFIGURED SHOWS

THE U.S. MILITARY EXPECTED THE GERMANS TO ARRIVE

IN THEIR POWERFUL, SUPER-FAST BATTLESHIPS.

LOCAL HISTORIAN TYLER DREIBLATT KNOWS

LOCAL HISTORIAN TYLER DREIBLATT KNOWS

THE FORT MILES OBSERVATION TOWERS

WERE THE FIRST LINE OF DEFENSE.

SO, THIS TOWER WAS HERE TO SPOT FOR THE BIG GERMAN BATTLESHIPS

LIKE THE BISMARCK AND THE TIRPITZ.

THAT'S WHAT WE WERE WORRIED ABOUT HERE AT FORT MILES.

Narrator: WHEN CONSTRUCTION BEGAN ON THESE TOWERS,

THE U.S. HAD YET TO ENTER THE WAR.

BUT THEY WERE SENDING CARGO SHIPS DOWN THE DELAWARE RIVER

AND OUT ACROSS THE ATLANTIC TO SUPPORT THEIR ALLY,

AND OUT ACROSS THE ATLANTIC TO SUPPORT THEIR ALLY,

GREAT BRITAIN.

THEN AFTER THE FALL OF FRANCE IN MAY/JUNE 1940,

GREAT BRITAIN STOOD ALONE AGAINST NAZI GERMANY.

THE BATTLE THEY LANDED IN WAS AN ATTEMPT BY THE AMERICANS

TO SUPPLY GREAT BRITAIN

DESPITE THE PRESENCE OF THE GERMAN FLEET.

Bell: THIS WAS A TONNAGE WAR.

AND IF HITLER COULD CUT BRITAIN OFF FROM HER SUPPLIES,

THEN VICTORY WOULD BE WITHIN HIS GRASP.

Narrator: THE REMNANTS OF GUN EMPLACEMENTS INDICATE WHERE HEAVY ARTILLERY,

Narrator: THE REMNANTS OF GUN EMPLACEMENTS INDICATE WHERE HEAVY ARTILLERY,

THAT COULD FIRE MILES OUT TO SEA,

WAS PLACED TO PROTECT THE BAY

AND THE FLOW OF TRAFFIC HEADING TO BRITAIN.

AND BY LATE '42, EARLY '43, THE FORT WAS READY TO ROCK AND ROLL.

Narrator: MADE OF 100,000 TONS OF CONCRETE,

BATTERY 519 HIDES THE JEWEL

IN THE CROWN OF THIS DEFENSE SYSTEM.

THIS CORRIDOR CUTS THROUGH THE CENTER OF THIS HUGE BUNKER.

THIS CORRIDOR CUTS THROUGH THE CENTER OF THIS HUGE BUNKER.

OLD, RUSTY CHAINS HANG FROM RAILS.

THIS RAIL LEADS YOU TO THIS MONSTROUS GUN.

WHEN YOU SEE THIS, THE TOWERS START TO MAKE SENSE.

Meigs: THESE LOOKOUT TOWERS WERE INTENDED

TO HELP THE ARTILLERY MEN TO FIND THEIR TARGETS BETTER.

THEY WOULD TAKE A SHOT, SEE WHERE IT LANDED,

THEN THE GUYS IN THE TOWER WOULD SAY

"TWO DEGREES RIGHT, TWO DEGREES LEFT."

Dreiblatt: SO THIS TOWER WAS ONE OF 15 UP AND DOWN THE COAST,

ALL WORKING TOGETHER TO TARGET THOSE ENEMY BATTLESHIPS.

Narrator: THE TOWERS WORKED IN TANDEM WITH THE BATTERIES ON

THE GROUND.

WHEN YOU GET INSIDE ONE OF THESE BATTERIES,

YOU SEE TECHNOLOGY THAT IN SOME WAYS HADN'T CHANGED

THAT MUCH SINCE THE 19TH CENTURY.

THIS WAS A FACILITY DESIGNED TO KEEP ENORMOUS QUANTITIES

THIS WAS A FACILITY DESIGNED TO KEEP ENORMOUS QUANTITIES

OF SHELLS, HUGE QUANTITIES OF POWDER TO PROPEL THE SHELLS.

Narrator: THE FORT'S SMALLER GUNS ALSO REQUIRED

BOMBPROOF HOUSING.

THIS MIGHTY STRUCTURE IS BATTERY HERRING.

HERRING WAS PART OF ONE OF FOUR BATTERIES,

AND YOU CAN STILL SEE THE TURNTABLES WHERE

THE SIX-INCH GUNS WOULD HAVE SAT.

YOU CAN FIRE A SIX INCH GUN -- IT FIRED A 100 POUND SHELL,

ARMOR PIERCING SHELL, ABOUT ONCE EVERY 15 SECONDS,

ARMOR PIERCING SHELL, ABOUT ONCE EVERY 15 SECONDS,

AH, AND SO A BLIZZARD OF SHELLS WILL START COMING IN

ON ENEMY SHIP.

Narrator: AND WITH MORE ARTILLERY AND FORTIFICATIONS

INSTALLED 12 MILES AWAY ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE DELAWARE BAY,

FORT MILES WAS COMPLETE.

NOW THE AMERICANS BELIEVED THEY WERE READY

TO TAKE WHATEVER THE GERMANS COULD THROW AT THEM.

A LOT OF MILITARY EXPERTS HAD THEIR MINDS IN THE MENTALITY

THAT WARS ARE FOUGHT BETWEEN GIANT BATTLESHIPS

BOMBARDING THINGS ON LAND,

BOMBARDING THINGS ON LAND,

GIANT FORTS ON LAND BOMBARDING THE BATTLESHIPS.

Dr. Wray: THOSE SHIPS ARE GONNA APPEAR OVER THE HORIZON

TO ATTACK THE EAST COAST OF THE UNITED STATES.

SO THIS FORT WAS BUILT TO DEFEND AGAINST THEM.

THE GERMANS, UNFORTUNATELY, OUTFOXED US.

THE PROBLEM WAS GERMANY DIDN'T ARRIVE WITH BATTLESHIPS.

Narrator: THE GERMANS ARRIVED WITH SOMETHING FAR MORE DEADLY

AND WOULD SOON CLAIM THOUSANDS OF AMERICAN LIVES.

*

Narrator: DURING WORLD WAR II, FORT MILES HAD BEEN BUILT

TO PROTECT DELAWARE BAY AGAINST NAZI ATTACK.

BUT THIS STRATEGICALLY PLACED MILITARY INSTALLATION

WOULD SOON REVEAL ITS SHORTCOMINGS.

LOOK AT THIS ARRAY OF FORTIFICATIONS AND CLOSING

DELAWARE BAY,

AND THEY'RE ALL DESIGNED TO KEEP ENEMY WARSHIPS FAR

AND THEY'RE ALL DESIGNED TO KEEP ENEMY WARSHIPS FAR

OFFSHORE BEYOND EFFECTIVE GUN RANGE, AND ALSO TO THWART ANY

ENEMY ATTACK AT LANDING TROOPS ALONG DELAWARE BAY.

AND JUST WHEN THIS DEFENSIVE SYSTEM WAS COMPLETED,

IT SUDDENLY BECAME OBSOLETE.

Narrator: DECEMBER 1941 --

HITLER DECLARES WAR ON THE U.S.

AND DISPATCHES FIVE STATE-OF-THE-ART,

LONG-RANGE U-BOATS TO ATTACK AMERICA'S ATLANTIC COAST.

LONG-RANGE U-BOATS TO ATTACK AMERICA'S ATLANTIC COAST.

THE STEALTH OF HITLER'S SUBMARINES

HAD ALREADY CAUSED DEVASTATION IN EUROPEAN WATERS.

THE AMERICANS DON'T REALLY HAVE GOOD SORT OF SUBMARINE SENSE.

THEY'RE STILL THINKING IN TERMS OF BIG FLEET ACTIONS

AND THE OPEN SEA, AND THEY DON'T REALIZE

THAT THESE GERMAN SUBMARINE WOLF PACKS

ARE CREEPING RIGHT UP TO THE AMERICAN SHORE.

THE LOOKOUT TOWERS DESIGNED TO HELP AIM THE BIG GUNS

TURNED OUT TO BE BASICALLY USELESS AGAINST SUBMARINES.

THEY STAY UNDERWATER DURING THE DAY.

THEY STAY UNDERWATER DURING THE DAY.

THEY SURFACE AT NIGHT.

THEY MOSTLY HUNT OTHER SHIPS AT NIGHT WHEN THEY CAN'T

BE SEEN.

THE TOWERS REALLY WEREN'T EFFECTIVE AGAINST THAT AT ALL.

Narrator: THE RESULT WAS CARNAGE.

DURING A FIVE-MONTH PERIOD, OVER 600 U.S. SHIPS,

TOTALING THREE MILLION TONS, WERE LOST.

OVER 5,000 AMERICAN SAILORS LOST THEIR LIVES.

Narrator: 18 OF THESE SHIPS SANK IN FRONT OF FORT MILES

AT THE ENTRANCE OF THE DELAWARE BAY.

IN THE INTEREST OF MORALE, U.S. MILITARY CHIEFS

WOULD HAVE LIKED THE HUMILIATING DEFEAT TO REMAIN SECRET.

BUT THE LOCALS KNEW SOMETHING WAS HAPPENING OUT THERE

BECAUSE YOU COULD HEAR THE EXPLOSIONS

AND SEE THE FLAMES AT NIGHT.

AND THEN IN THE MORNING, YOU WOULD SEE THE OIL

AND THE FLOTSAM THAT WOULD COME ASHORE.

AND THE FLOTSAM THAT WOULD COME ASHORE.

IT WAS A DISASTER OF THE FIRST ORDER.

THE GERMAN U-BOAT WAR AGAINST U.S. SHIPPING ON OUR OWN COAST

WAS DEVASTATING.

IN 1942, YOU KNOW, THERE'S JUST ABSOLUTELY

MIND-BOGGLING NUMBERS OF AMERICAN TONNAGE SENT TO

THE BOTTOM BY GERMAN SUBMARINES --

JUST SINKING SHIP, AFTER SHIP,

AFTER SHIP AS ITS EXITED PORTS

EN ROUTE TO SUPPORT THE ALLIES.

THE GERMAN ADMIRALS AND SUBMARINE SKIPPERS

REFERRED TO THESE EARLY MONTHS

AS THE HAPPY TIME.

AS THE HAPPY TIME.

Narrator: THE AMERICANS HAD TO COME UP WITH A COUNTER MOVE -- FAST.

THE CURIOUSLY LONG JETTY AT FORT MILES

STANDS AS TESTIMONY TO WHAT HAPPENED NEXT.

THE DECISION WAS TAKEN TO DEPLOY THIS ENORMOUS MINEFIELD

ACROSS THE MOUTH OF DELAWARE BAY.

500 FLOATING MINES TETHERED TO THE SEA BED

TO STOP ANY GERMAN SUBMARINES COMING UP THE DELAWARE RIVER.

TO STOP ANY GERMAN SUBMARINES COMING UP THE DELAWARE RIVER.

Narrator: THE 6,000-POUND MINES WERE DEPLOYED IN THE DEEPEST CHANNEL

OF THE DELAWARE BAY, WHERE SUBMARINES COULD LURK.

Dr. Wray: THE MINE WHARF WAS 1,700 FEET LONG,

AND IT WAS OUT IN DEEP WATER,

AND YOU HAD A MINEFIELD OUT IN FRONT.

THERE WAS A HUGE CABLE THAT WENT ACROSS FROM THE DELAWARE SIDE

TO THE NEW JERSEY SIDE

WHICH BLOCKED THE MOUTH OF THE BAY.

Dreiblatt: THE MEN IN THIS TOWER ALSO WORKED TOGETHER

TO SPOT SHIPS MOVING INTO THE BAY,

WHERE THEY COULD MAKE THE DECISION TO SET OFF ONE MINE,

WHERE THEY COULD MAKE THE DECISION TO SET OFF ONE MINE,

15 MINES, OR ALL 455

THAT CROSSED ALL THE WAY ACROSS THE DELAWARE.

Narrator: WITH THE REMOTELY DETONATED MINES IN PLACE,

FORT MILES WAS FINALLY ABLE TO PROTECT WAR SUPPLIES

COMING OUT OF DELAWARE BAY,

UNTIL MAY 14th, 1945,

WHEN U-BOAT 858 SURRENDERED AT THE PIER HERE,

EFFECTIVELY MARKING THE END OF WORLD WAR II FOR THIS REGION.

EFFECTIVELY MARKING THE END OF WORLD WAR II FOR THIS REGION.

AFTER THE WAR, THE GERMAN U-BOATS WERE REPLACED

BY SOVIET SUBMARINES,

AND SO THE NAVY IS GOING TO COME IN AND ACTIVATE

THE SOUTHERN PART OF

THE BASE AND INSTALL A SOUND- UNDERWATER LISTENING STATION TO

LISTEN IN ON THE SIGNATURE OF SOVIET SUBMARINES.

Narrator: AND WHEN THE COLD WAR ENDED,

FORT MILES FINALLY CLOSED IN 1991.

TODAY, THIS FAR-FLUNG FACILITY IS PRESERVED AS A MUSEUM

TODAY, THIS FAR-FLUNG FACILITY IS PRESERVED AS A MUSEUM

AND SERVES AS A STARK REMINDER

OF JUST HOW REAL THE NAZI THREAT TO AMERICA WAS.

WE THOUGHT THE GERMANS WERE COMING OVER THE HORIZON,

AND WE WERE PREPARING FOR THEM.

THE MEN AND WOMEN THAT BUILT

THIS FORT THOUGHT THEY WERE

DEFENDING LITTLE DELAWARE FROM A GERMAN INVASION.

SO THE THREAT WAS REAL.

Narrator: IN RURAL NORTHEASTERN SPAIN

LIES A CLUSTER OF DESICCATED BUILDINGS

LIES A CLUSTER OF DESICCATED BUILDINGS

THAT HAVE BEEN LEFT HIGH AND DRY.

Bell: THIS PLACE USED TO BE REALLY CIVILIZED.

THERE ARE BALCONIES, A LOCAL WATERING HOLE,

A BEAUTIFUL, GREAT CHURCH.

Dr. Nusbacher: YOU CAN SEE WHERE PEOPLE LIVED AND WHERE PEOPLE WORKED,

WHERE PEOPLE WORSHIPED.

THE ONLY THING YOU CAN'T SEE IS THE PEOPLE.

Selwood: THE OLD STONE BUILDINGS ARE COMPLETELY CRUMBLING.

THE CEILINGS ARE REALLY ONLY BEING HELD UP

BY HALF-ROTTEN TREE BRANCHES.

BY HALF-ROTTEN TREE BRANCHES.

Narrator: AT FIRST SIGHT, THERE'S LITTLE INDICATION

AS TO WHY THIS PLACE WAS ABANDONED.

Dr. Nusbacher: WHAT KIND OF EVACUATION

GIVES PEOPLE THE TIME TO PACK UP ALL OF THEIR WORLDLY GOODS

AND GO DOWN THE ROAD

IN HOPES OF BUILDING A FUTURE SOMEWHERE ELSE?

Narrator: THERE'S SOMETHING ABOUT THIS SITE THAT DOESN'T ADD UP.

Auerbach: NORTHEAST SPAIN IS A PRETTY DRY AREA.

Auerbach: NORTHEAST SPAIN IS A PRETTY DRY AREA.

BUT THERE WAS WATER HERE.

SO, IT MUST HAVE BEEN AN ATTRACTIVE PLACE

TO LIVE AT SOME POINT.

WHY WOULD ANYONE LEAVE?

Selwood: THE PEOPLE WHO HAD SETTLED HERE HAD FOUND A GARDEN OF EDEN.

BUT SOMEONE WITH AN EVEN BIGGER STICK WANTED IT.

Auerbach: IT'S A DAVID AND GOLIATH STORY,

BUT THIS ONE DOESN'T HAVE A HAPPY ENDING.

*

Narrator: THIS IS THE ANCIENT VILLAGE OF ESCO.

Narrator: THIS IS THE ANCIENT VILLAGE OF ESCO.

FOR HUNDREDS OF YEARS, IT WAS A STOPPING POINT

ALONG THE THOUSAND-MILE PILGRIMAGE ROUTE,

THE CAMINO DE SANTIAGO.

Selwood: THOUSANDS -- MILLIONS OF CHRISTIANS

WOULD MAKE THE PILGRIMAGE ALONG THIS ROUTE ON FOOT.

THIS PLACE, ESCO VILLAGE,

WAS A VERY WELCOME REST STOP ON THAT PILGRIMAGE.

Narrator: ESCO LIES IN A RUGGED, MOUNTAINOUS REGION.

BUT THANKS TO THE PILGRIMS AND THE FRUITS OF THE LAND,

IT THRIVED WELL INTO THE 20th CENTURY.

IT THRIVED WELL INTO THE 20th CENTURY.

FORMER RESIDENT JOSE LUIS CLEMENTE

REMEMBERS THAT TIME.

THIS SITE WAS HIS CHILDHOOD HOME.

Clemente: [ SPEAKING SPANISH ]

Translator: THIS IS WHERE I WAS BORN.

I WAS HAPPY HERE.

I LIVED HERE FOR TEN YEARS.

I REMEMBER IT ALL VERY FONDLY.

YEARS AGO, THESE RUINS WE SEE NOW --

THEY HAD A LIFE OF THEIR OWN.

THERE WAS A VERY STRONG COMMUNITY HERE.

THERE WAS A VERY STRONG COMMUNITY HERE.

AT THE BEGINNING OF THE LAST CENTURY,

THERE WERE AS MANY AS 260 VILLAGERS HERE.

Narrator: AROUND THIS SITE,

LAND SUITABLE FOR GROWING CROPS IS SCARCE,

LIMITED TO THE NARROW VALLEY BOTTOM.

BUT THE RELICS OF IRRIGATION CHANNELS, TERRACES, AND ORCHARDS

SHOW THE ESCO FARMERS MADE THE MOST OF WHAT THEY HAD.

FARMING WAS CLEARLY AT THE CENTER OF VILLAGE LIFE.

FARMING WAS CLEARLY AT THE CENTER OF VILLAGE LIFE.

Clemente: [ SPEAKING SPANISH ]

Translator: PEOPLE LIVED OFF THE LAND.

IN THESE GROVES, THEY GREW VEGETABLES,

FRUIT, ALL SORTS OF THINGS.

Narrator: THE VILLAGE OF ESCO BLOSSOMED BY VIRTUE OF ITS GEOGRAPHY.

Auerbach: THIS IS A VERY DRY PART OF SPAIN,

BUT THIS PARTICULAR REGION IS WELL WATERED

BY RUNOFF FROM THE PYRENEES MOUNTAINS.

Selwood: SO, FOR HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF YEARS,

Selwood: SO, FOR HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF YEARS,

THIS VALLEY IS NICELY WETTED BY ITS FAVORABLE GEOLOGY.

Clemente: [ SPEAKING SPANISH ]

Translator: THERE WAS A WATER CHANNEL

THAT BROUGHT WATER FROM THE ESCO RIVER

AND THAT IRRIGATED ALL THE ORCHARDS.

Narrator: BUT WHEN JOSE WAS JUST TEN YEARS OLD,

SOMETHING HAPPENED TO CHANGE THIS ANCIENT WAY OF FARMING.

THE VERY WATER THAT WAS THE FOUNT OF LIFE

FOR THIS VILLAGE WOULD ULTIMATELY BE ITS DOWNFALL.

FOR THIS VILLAGE WOULD ULTIMATELY BE ITS DOWNFALL.

*

Narrator: IN NORTHEASTERN SPAIN, THE VILLAGE OF ESCO

WAS ONCE HOME TO A TRADITIONAL SPANISH FARMING COMMUNITY.

BUT IN THE MID 20th CENTURY,

SPAIN'S DRIVE TO MODERNIZE THREATENED ITS EXISTENCE.

IT WAS THE HEIGHT OF THE REIGN

OF THE FASCIST DICTATOR GENERAL FRANCO.

IN THE 1950s, SPAIN WAS BEGINNING TO REBUILD ITSELF

AFTER A SERIES OF CRISES --

THE CIVIL WAR, THE SECOND WORLD WAR --

AND THE DECISION WAS MADE TO MODERNIZE THIS PART OF SPAIN.

Dr. Nusbacher: SPANISH INDUSTRY STARTS TO DEVELOP,

AND THERE IS MORE AND MORE NEED FOR WATER FOR FARMING,

FOR DRINKING WATER IN CITIES, FOR POWERING INDUSTRY.

AND THAT WATER HAS GOT TO COME FROM SOMEWHERE.

AND YOU CAN'T WAIT FOR THE RAINS TO COME

AND YOU CAN'T WAIT FOR THE RAINS TO COME

TO RUN A MODERN INDUSTRIAL ECONOMY.

Narrator: ESCO SITS IN THE YESA VALLEY,

AN OASIS IN A NOTORIOUSLY DRY REGION.

HERE, SNOWMELT AND SUMMER RAINS COURSE DOWNSTREAM.

IT WAS A PRIME TARGET FOR ONE OF GENERAL FRANCO'S

AMBITIOUS WATER INFRASTRUCTURE SCHEMES.

THE DECISION WAS MADE TO PUT A RESERVOIR IN THE VALLEY,

THE DECISION WAS MADE TO PUT A RESERVOIR IN THE VALLEY,

WHICH THEY DID BY DAMMING THE RIVER

THAT RUNS RIGHT THROUGH HERE.

Narrator: IN 1960,

GENERAL FRANCO INAUGURATED HIS PRIZED YESA DAM.

TOWERING ALMOST 250 FEET HIGH,

IT CREATED ONE OF THE LARGEST RESERVOIRS IN THE PYRENEES

AND FLOODED 2,500 HECTARES OF LAND,

INCLUDING THE PRECIOUS CULTIVATABLE PASTURES OF ESCO.

BUT GENERAL FRANCO'S IRON GRIP ON THE PEOPLE OF SPAIN

BUT GENERAL FRANCO'S IRON GRIP ON THE PEOPLE OF SPAIN

MEANT SPEAKING OUT WAS UNTHINKABLE.

Clemente: [ SPEAKING SPANISH ]

Translator: THERE WERE NO PROTESTS OR ANYTHING

BECAUSE THEY WERE A POLITICAL CRIME AND SIMPLY NOT PERMITTED.

HERE, THE PEOPLE WERE VERY STRAIGHTFORWARD,

NOT CUNNING ENOUGH,

AND THEY DID WHAT THEY WERE TOLD.

Narrator: ESCO ITSELF WASN'T FLOODED,

SO AT FIRST, JOSE'S FAMILY AND THE OTHER VILLAGERS

SO AT FIRST, JOSE'S FAMILY AND THE OTHER VILLAGERS

THOUGHT THEY COULD SURVIVE.

Auerbach: SO, THE WATER STARTS TO RISE,

THEIR FARMABLE LAND STARTS TO SHRINK.

THEIR BREADBASKET WAS BECOMING A BUCKET.

Selwood: THEY TRIED TO SUSTAIN THEMSELVES ON THE LAND THEY HAD LEFT,

BUT IT SIMPLY WASN'T ENOUGH TO FEED EVERYONE.

Dr. Nusbacher: BIT BY BIT, THE VILLAGERS SAW

THAT THEIR LIVELIHOODS

WERE GOING UNDER THE SURFACE OF THAT LAKE.

Clemente: [ SPEAKING SPANISH ]

Translator: THE RESERVOIR FLOODED ALL THE RICHEST LANDS.

Translator: THE RESERVOIR FLOODED ALL THE RICHEST LANDS.

IT WASN'T ENOUGH FOR ALL THE FAMILIES TO LIVE ON,

SO EVERY ONE OF THEM

CHOSE TO LEAVE AND LIVE SOMEWHERE ELSE.

Dr. Nusbacher: WATER FOR THESE FARMERS WAS THE STUFF OF LIFE,

AND IT WAS WATER THAT SNUFFED IT OUT.

Narrator: TODAY, JOSE HEADS UP THE ESCO RESIDENTS' ASSOCIATION,

Narrator: TODAY, JOSE HEADS UP THE ESCO RESIDENTS' ASSOCIATION,

WHICH CAMPAIGNS TO GET THEIR LAND BACK,

BUT THEIR ULTIMATE GOAL IS TO RETURN HOME ONE DAY.

Clemente: [ SPEAKING SPANISH ]

Translator: IT TAKES ONE DROP TO START A WATERFALL.

SO, IF I PUT DOWN A STONE AND BUILD A HOUSE,

OTHERS WILL START TO FOLLOW AND BUILD MORE HOUSES,

AND THE VILLAGE WILL COME BACK TO LIFE.

Dr. Nusbacher: SPAIN HAS BEEN A DEMOCRACY A FEW YEARS NOW.

Dr. Nusbacher: SPAIN HAS BEEN A DEMOCRACY A FEW YEARS NOW.

SO, NOW IT MIGHT BE POSSIBLE FOR PEOPLE TO RETURN

AND MAKE NEW LIVES IN THEIR OLD VILLAGE.

*

Narrator: IN KAWATANA IN THE SOUTHWEST OF JAPAN,

STRANGE STRUCTURES JUT OUT INTO THE BAY.

*

WHEN YOU SEE THIS AREA, IT LOOKS VERY PEACEFUL --

WHEN YOU SEE THIS AREA, IT LOOKS VERY PEACEFUL --

WOODED HILLS, LOVELY BAYS.

IT LOOKS LIKE MAYBE SOME PLACE YOU'D GO ON A YOGA RETREAT.

ON THE SURFACE, IT LOOKS LIKE

A RATHER CHARMING JAPANESE SEASIDE VILLAGE.

THERE'S A PENINSULA AT THE END JUTTING OUT INTO OMURA BAY,

AND WE SEE THE REMAINS OF BUILDINGS EMERGING FROM

THE TREES.

WE SEE A LITTLE HOUSE MAROONED IN THE SEA,

AND IT'S HARD TO KNOW EXACTLY WHAT THIS IS WITHOUT

GETTING CLOSER.

GETTING CLOSER.

Narrator: BUT AS TRANQUIL AS THIS PLACE MIGHT FIRST APPEAR,

IN TRUTH, IT CONCEALS A VIOLENT PAST.

Barratt: AS YOU HEAD UP ONE OF THE HILLS, YOU CAN SEE UP TO THE PEAK.

YOU GET THE MOST AMAZING VIEWS OUT ACROSS THE WATER.

AND THAT, I THINK, IS THE CLUE TO WHAT THIS PLACE WAS FOR.

Meigs: THIS IS A VERY REMOTE LOCATION.

YOU DON'T SEE MAJOR TOWNS. IT'S NOT A MAJOR PORT.

YOU DON'T SEE A LOT OF OTHER BOATS IN THE AREA.

YOU DON'T SEE A LOT OF OTHER BOATS IN THE AREA.

WHOEVER BUILT THESE BUILDINGS HAD A REASON TO BE AS FAR AWAY

FROM OTHER PEOPLE AS POSSIBLE.

Barratt: WERE THEY DOING SOMETHING SECRET?

WERE THEY DOING SOMETHING DANGEROUS?

THERE ARE STORIES HERE IN THESE BUILDINGS.

Narrator: WHILE FEW CLUES REMAIN,

THIS SITE WAS, IN FACT, CONNECTED

TO THE DEADLY ATTACK ON PEARL HARBOR.

SO, WHAT CONFIDENTIAL WORK TOOK PLACE HERE?

AND WHAT ROLE DID IT HAVE ON THAT FATEFUL DAY?

AND WHAT ROLE DID IT HAVE ON THAT FATEFUL DAY?

THE PEAK OF ACTIVITY FOR THIS SITE DATES BACK

TO THE SECOND WORLD WAR.

[ SPEAKING JAPANESE ]

Translator: 74 YEARS HAVE PASSED SINCE THE WAR.

BUT IN KAWATANA, THERE ARE MANY PLACES LIKE THIS

LEFT OVER FROM THAT TIME.

Narrator: MURAI TATSUMI IS A VOLUNTEER GUIDE IN THE AREA

AND FIRST BEGAN EXPLORING THIS SITE AT A YOUNG AGE.

Tatsumi: [ SPEAKING JAPANESE ]

Translator: I HAPPENED TO BE BORN HERE AND GREW UP AROUND HERE.

Translator: I HAPPENED TO BE BORN HERE AND GREW UP AROUND HERE.

SO, THIS WAS A GOOD AREA TO PLAY IN.

BUT IT USED TO BE LIKE AN OVERGROWN FOREST HERE.

NOBODY REALLY KNEW WHAT THOSE BUILDINGS ORIGINALLY WERE.

Narrator: WHILE THE HISTORY OF THE SITE WAS NEGLECTED FOR YEARS,

FROM ITS EARLIEST DAYS AT THE END OF THE FIRST WORLD WAR,

THIS LOCATION PLAYED A VITAL ROLE

IN GROWING JAPAN'S NAVAL PROWESS.

I THINK, TODAY, MANY PEOPLE DON'T REALIZE

I THINK, TODAY, MANY PEOPLE DON'T REALIZE

JUST HOW POWERFUL JAPAN WAS

IN THE FIRST HALF OF THE 20th CENTURY.

Wawro: IT HAD TAKEN OVER TERRITORY ON THE CHINESE MAINLAND.

IT HAD TAKEN OVER A NUMBER OF FORMALLY GERMAN ISLAND GROUPS

IN THE PACIFIC.

AND THEY WERE NEEDING BIGGER AND BIGGER

AND MORE SOPHISTICATED NAVAL FACILITIES

FOR THIS BIG OCEANGOING FLEET

THAT WAS GOING TO PROTECT THIS GROWING JAPANESE EMPIRE.

Narrator: THE UNIQUE FEATURES STILL VISIBLE TODAY

Narrator: THE UNIQUE FEATURES STILL VISIBLE TODAY

BETRAY THE SPECIFIC PURPOSE OF THIS FACILITY.

THE KEY THING ABOUT THIS AREA IS THE PIER.

AND MORE IMPORTANTLY, THAT SECTION AT THE END --

THE CUTOUT SECTION.

THIS SITE IS ALL ABOUT THE WATER.

BUT WE'RE NOT LOOKING AT SHIPS OR VESSELS HERE.

IT'S ALL ABOUT WEAPONS.

THIS WAS THE LOCATION JAPAN USED TO TEST NEW TORPEDO DESIGNS.

Narrator: THIS IS THE KATASHIMA TORPEDO TEST SITE.

Narrator: THIS IS THE KATASHIMA TORPEDO TEST SITE.

SITUATED ON THE SHORE OF OMURA BAY,

A LARGE INLAND BODY OF WATER,

THE JAPANESE NAVY HAD FOUND A QUIET AND SECURE POSITION

TO ADVANCE THEIR WEAPONS PROGRAM.

BUT HOW WOULD THIS SITE GO ON TO PLAY A DEVASTATING ROLE

IN DRAWING THE U.S. INTO BATTLE?

*

Narrator: IN THE SOUTHWEST OF JAPAN

LIE THE REMAINS OF AN OLD TORPEDO TESTING SITE --

A FACILITY THAT PLAYED A KEY ROLE IN JAPAN'S PREPARATIONS

FOR ATTACKING THE U.S. IN THE SECOND WORLD WAR.

[ SPEAKING JAPANESE ]

Translator: HERE ARE THE MARKS FROM WHERE THE MINE-CART RAILS USED TO BE.

THEY'D PUT THE TORPEDOES IN A MINE CART

AND THEN BRING THEM HERE.

AND THEN BRING THEM HERE.

AND THEN HERE, THERE WAS PROBABLY A CRANE.

THEY'D PUT THE TORPEDO ON THE CRANE

AND LOWER IT THREE TO FIVE METERS UNDER THE WATER.

THEY'D AIM IT AT A TARGET TWO KILOMETERS AWAY

AND FIRE IT FROM HERE.

Narrator: ON TOP OF THE HILL STOOD AN OBSERVATION POST

WHERE THE TRAJECTORY OF THE TORPEDO COULD BE MONITORED.

SO THE WHOLE OF THE INFRASTRUCTURE HERE IS

AIMING AT ONE THING,

AND THAT'S TESTING TORPEDOES.

YOU HAVE TO BE ABLE TO TRACK THE THING.

YOU HAVE TO BE ABLE TO TRACK THE THING.

WE CAN SEE THE OBSERVATION PLATFORMS

WHERE NAVAL OFFICERS TESTING

THE TORPEDOES WOULD WATCH THEM RUN ACROSS THE WATER AND NOTE

DOWN OBSERVATIONS ABOUT ROUTE SPEED, DIRECTION, VELOCITY,

ALL THAT KIND OF STUFF.

AND THEN YOU'VE HAD SPOTTERS OUT ON BOATS AS WELL.

A RISKY BUSINESS BECAUSE THOSE TORPEDOES DIDN'T ALWAYS GO

WHERE THEY THOUGHT THEY WERE GOING TO.

Wawro: A TESTING FACILITY LIKE THIS -- THEY WERE DOING A DRY RUN

WITH ALL OF THEIR VARIOUS TORPEDO TECHNOLOGIES.

TESTING THE VARIOUS FUSES,

TESTING HOW IT WOULD RUN AT CERTAIN DEPTHS,

TESTING HOW IT WOULD RUN AT CERTAIN DEPTHS,

TESTING OF WHETHER IT WOULD EXPLODE ON IMPACT

OR IF THE FUSE WOULD EXPLODE NEAR THE HULL OF THE ENEMY SHIP.

Narrator: THROUGHOUT THE 1930s, JAPAN UTILIZED TORPEDOES

IN PURSUIT OF ITS EXPANSIONIST AIMS.

BUT IN ORDER TO PERFECT THEIR WEAPON OF CHOICE,

THE LAND-BASED FACILITIES WERE JUST AS VITAL.

Tatsumi: [ SPEAKING JAPANESE ]

Translator: HERE YOU CAN SEE A CHANNEL.

THIS MUST BE THE WATERWAY.

THERE ARE WATER POOLS FOR INDUSTRIAL WATER NEXT TO IT.

THERE ARE WATER POOLS FOR INDUSTRIAL WATER NEXT TO IT.

OVER HERE, WE THINK THERE WERE MACHINES FOR PROCESSING.

Narrator: LITTLE EVIDENCE REMAINS TO DETERMINE

EXACTLY HOW THIS PLACE RAN

AND THE FULL EXTENT OF THE WORK CARRIED OUT IN HERE.

BUT TATSUMI IS CERTAIN OF THIS BUILDING'S IMPORTANCE

TO THE PROJECT.

Tatsumi: [ SPEAKING JAPANESE ]

Translator: TO FIRE TORPEDOES,

YOU HAVE TO USE AIR TO BURN THE FUEL.

SO, IN THIS ROOM, THE COMPRESSED AIR

SO, IN THIS ROOM, THE COMPRESSED AIR

WAS PUT INTO THE TORPEDOES.

THIS WAS THE MOST IMPORTANT PART OF THE PREPARATIONS.

Narrator: AFTER YEARS SPENT PERFECTING THEIR WEAPON,

ON THE HORIZON WAS JAPAN'S GREATEST CHALLENGE YET --

AN ATTACK ON THE U.S. NAVY.

TO HELP READY THEM FOR THE ASSAULT

A SPECIFIC MODEL OF TORPEDO

WAS TESTED NUMEROUS TIMES HERE --

THE TYPE 91.

THE TYPE 91.

THIS WAS A TORPEDO DESIGNED TO BE DROPPED FROM AIRPLANES.

THEY SPECIFICALLY MODIFIED IT TO WORK IN SHALLOW WATER

BECAUSE THEY HAD A TARGET IN MIND.

THEY WANTED TO USE IT FOR THE BIG ATTACK

THEY WERE PLANNING ON PEARL HARBOR IN HAWAII.

*

Narrator: FOLLOWING THE SUCCESSFUL ATTACK IN 1941,

JAPAN CONTINUED WITH ITS TORPEDO CAMPAIGN

ACROSS THE PACIFIC THEATER.

ACROSS THE PACIFIC THEATER.

Meigs: JAPAN'S FOCUS ON DEVELOPING TORPEDO TECHNOLOGY

WAS VERY SMART BECAUSE, AT THIS TIME,

MANY NAVAL EXPERTS WERE STILL THINKING

ABOUT BATTLESHIPS AS THE PRIMARY WEAPON OF WAR.

AND BATTLESHIPS, IN FACT, WERE ALMOST OBSOLETE BY THEN.

Wawro: THEIR STRATEGY WAS TO KIND OF DRAW THE AMERICANS

ACROSS THE BROAD PACIFIC

AND WHITTLE DOWN THE STRENGTH OF THE AMERICAN FLEET

BY TAKING OUT THEIR BIG BATTLESHIPS

AND AIRCRAFT CARRIERS WITH TORPEDOES.

AND AIRCRAFT CARRIERS WITH TORPEDOES.

THE VAST MAJORITY OF SHIPS SUNK IN THE PACIFIC DURING THE WAR

WERE SUNK BY TORPEDOES -- WHETHER FIRED FROM OTHER SHIPS,

FROM SUBMARINES, OR DROPPED FROM AIRPLANES.

Narrator: WITH A REINVIGORATED INTEREST IN THIS WEAPON,

THE SITE HERE BEGAN TO EXPAND AS INVESTMENT FLOWED IN,

RECLAIMING LAND FROM THE WATER

TO TURN THE ISLAND INTO A PENINSULA

AND EXPANDING THE FACILITIES UPWARDS AND OUTWARDS.

AND EXPANDING THE FACILITIES UPWARDS AND OUTWARDS.

ALL THAT INVESTMENT,

ALL THAT RESEARCH SHOWS JUST HOW IMPORTANT

THE TORPEDO RESEARCH PROGRAM WAS TO THE NAVY.

MAROONED IN THE WATER LIES THE REMAINS OF WHAT WAS INTENDED

TO BE THE NEXT STEP IN THIS FACILITY'S ADVANCEMENT.

Tatsumi: [ SPEAKING JAPANESE ]

Translator: TORPEDOES WERE BELIEVED TO BE THE BEST WEAPON

IN THE WORLD AT THE TIME.

JAPAN WASN'T THINKING ABOUT LOSING THE WAR AT ALL.

SO, THEY NEED TO MASS PRODUCE, AND THEY BUILT A FACTORY HERE,

SO, THEY NEED TO MASS PRODUCE, AND THEY BUILT A FACTORY HERE,

WHICH WAS THE LARGEST ONE IN THE COUNTRY.

THE PACE OF ENGINEERING ADVANCING

DURING THE SECOND WORLD WAR WAS PHENOMENAL.

AND THIS EXTRA BUILDING WAS FOR TARGETING TORPEDOES.

IT WAS FOR RESEARCH INTO CUTTING-EDGE SONAR TECHNOLOGY.

Tatsumi: [ SPEAKING JAPANESE ]

Translator: THIS BUILDING IS CALLED INVESTIGATING RECEIPT TEST SITE.

IT WAS A TESTING FACILITY FOR SONAR

TO HELP ACCURATELY DETERMINE

THE ENEMY WARSHIP'S LOCATION AND DISTANCE.

THE ENEMY WARSHIP'S LOCATION AND DISTANCE.

Narrator: BUT FOR THIS SITE, IT ALL CAME ABOUT TOO LATE.

Tatsumi: [ SPEAKING JAPANESE ]

Translator: WE DON'T HAVE ANY RECORDS OF TESTS HERE

BECAUSE, JUST AFTER TWO YEARS OF BUILDING THE SITE,

THE WAR ENDED.

SO, WE THINK THIS WAS ALL FOR NOTHING.

Narrator: ON AUGUST 9th, 1945, THE ATOMIC BOMB WAS DROPPED

ON NAGASAKI, LESS THAN 20 MILES AWAY.

ON NAGASAKI, LESS THAN 20 MILES AWAY.

WITHIN DAYS, THE JAPANESE SURRENDERED.

TODAY, [ INDISTINCT ] IS OPEN TO VISITORS, SHEDDING LIGHT

ON THE HISTORY OF THIS ONCE TOP SECRET SITE.

THIS PLACE IS SO QUIET, SO TRANQUIL -- IT'S BEAUTIFUL.

IT'S HARD TO BELIEVE THAT JUST A COUPLE OF

GENERATIONS AGO IT WAS A CUTTING EDGE OF

WAR TECHNOLOGY.

AND AN ANNUAL LANTERN FESTIVAL HONORS THE MANY

JAPANESE TROOPS WHO DIED IN THE PACIFIC WAR.

JAPANESE TROOPS WHO DIED IN THE PACIFIC WAR.

Tatsumi: [ SPEAKING JAPANESE ]

NOW WE PUT EMPHASIS ON

THE WAR IS SOMETHING WE SHOULDN'T REPEAT AGAIN.

AND TO KEEP THE PEACE,

WE WANT PEOPLE TO COME AND SEE THIS PLACE

AND THINK ABOUT IT CAREFULLY.