Original subtitles

*

Narrator: a kentucky ghost town Caught in the crossfire.

Meigs: in some cases,

People were literally killed In these fights.

There was always conflict.

Narrator: in japan,

Creepers invade a scene Wrecked by calamity.

Auerbach: the decoration here Is fantastic --

This place must have been Absolutely amazing.

Narrator: and in scotland, Fragments of a bridge foundation

Narrator: and in scotland, Fragments of a bridge foundation

Are all that remains Of a terrifying disaster.

Barratt: this just shook up The whole of the u.K.

*

Narrator: decaying relics.

Ruins of lost worlds.

Sites 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

*

The remote backwoods Of harlan county, kentucky,

Hide the remnants Of a grand-looking town.

*

Meigs: this was A confident town, a proud town.

Meigs: this was A confident town, a proud town.

There's buildings here Made of beautiful stone.

These are buildings made nicer Than they needed to be.

People wanted to get here.

That was something That it was drawing them.

Narrator: scattered ruins point To an industrial purpose.

Jerram: one of the more Impressive derelict sites

Is this big house With a huge chimney.

Meigs: it's hard to know what It is exactly,

Meigs: it's hard to know what It is exactly,

Just looming over These abandoned railroad tracks.

Narrator: the operation Is even more extensive

Below the surface.

Meigs: you can see these tunnel Entrances --

They look like New york's lincoln tunnel

Or holland tunnel.

Narrator: among these relics Lie signs of catastrophe.

Narrator: among these relics Lie signs of catastrophe.

So what spelt the end For this once-imposing town?

*

This deserted settlement Of a thousand homes

Is lynch, kentucky.

It dates back to The early 20th century.

With its wide streets And large municipal buildings,

Lynch was once one of The richest towns in the state.

Lynch was once one of The richest towns in the state.

Michael o'bradovich worked here.

This town was so big And so impressive

That people were coming From chicago and new york --

It was impressive.

Narrator: the town's grandeur Belies the grim reality

Of what was going on beneath it,

But he remembers Its former elegance fondly.

O'bradovich: we who live here Call this "The big store."

All of this here in the front Was women's apparel

All of this here in the front Was women's apparel

Or men's apparel.

Over on this side, There was a diner.

In my time, soda shop.

On the far end over there was Sporting goods and homegoods.

Narrator: this department store Was constructed in 1917.

Within eight years,

A large town had been built Around it, powered by

An enormous, state-of-the-art Generating station.

An enormous, state-of-the-art Generating station.

No expense was spared to build This surprisingly-grand place

In the middle of nowhere.

The first indication

As to who built this place Sits with its owners.

*

Meigs: u.S. Steel bought up Hundreds of acres

Under black mountain, In this part of kentucky.

Narrator: a further hint To why this place is here

Is the tell-tale Date of purchase --

Is the tell-tale Date of purchase --

The middle of The first world war.

Meigs: in 1917, the demand For steel was skyrocketing --

You had all the armaments That were being used in the war,

Everything was made of steel. Ships were being built,

You know, rail cars Are being built.

Narrator: even though there's No iron ore nearby, u.S. Steel

Invested millions of dollars Into these kentucky backwoods.

Jerram: the real thing That made lynch

Was actually Underneath the town,

And that was black gold -- Coal.

Meigs: lynch was created For one reason,

And that was to provide

A reliable and massive supply Of coal

To the country's leading Steel producer, u.S. Steel.

Jerram: this part of The appalachian mountains

Is very, very rich in Carboniferous coal.

This is a famous coal deposit

This is a famous coal deposit

That stretches All along north america

And has been mined For many, many years.

The thing that makes the coal At lynch so special

Is it's low in sulfur,

So it's very good For making steel.

These turned out to be some Of the wealthiest coal mines

In the country.

Narrator: as the son of a miner,

Nick sturgill knows the hazards That lie below ground here.

This is portal 31,

This is portal 31,

Once part of the largest Coal complex in the world.

Sturgill: portal 31, Even by today's standards,

Is enormous.

The north heading of portal 31 Goes approximately 13 miles.

The east heading actually goes Into virginia

Just a little ways.

Narrator: back in the 1930s,

Extraction continued apace, Despite the risks.

Extraction continued apace, Despite the risks.

Meigs: no matter how well A mine is run,

It's still very dangerous And difficult work.

The coal company also wanted To showcase,

To show off Their high standards.

They also stressed safety a lot.

Narrator: They even named this place

After the father of mine safety, Thomas lynch.

Meigs: they wanted to counteract This image

That mining was this terrible,

That mining was this terrible,

Dangerous occupation Where people were exploited.

Narrator: it worked. Lynch attracted workers

From all over the world.

With a german mother And montenegran father,

Former mine manager Michael o'bradovich's own family

Is typical of Those who flocked here.

O'bradovich: in its heyday, Lynch had around 10,000 people.

O'bradovich: in its heyday, Lynch had around 10,000 people.

With all those Different nationalities,

Most of the families here Had 5, 6, 7, 8 kids.

Narrator: the company invested Heavily to build this place.

They knew that there was So much coal here,

It was worth any expense

To build the infrastructure To get it out.

Narrator: Everything had to be shipped in

By train and mule wagons.

By train and mule wagons.

Jerram: all of a sudden, you've Got a big town with schools,

With churches, with hotels,

With whatever you wanted, In the space of 7-8 years.

Narrator: Its imposing post office,

Individually designed houses,

And wide boulevards Were unrivaled,

But the main objective Was to dig for coal.

They engineered the town To move the coal

As efficiently as possible.

They built a structure Called a tipple --

They built a structure Called a tipple --

This is like a giant bin That holds coal

And then loads it Onto rail cars.

They built the biggest tipple In the world.

Jerram: this tipple could handle 15,000 tons of coal a day.

Lynch was actually World famous --

It held the record Where miners produced

Nearly 13,000 tons of coal In one single nine-hour shift.

Now, that's pretty Impressive statistics.

Now, that's pretty Impressive statistics.

Narrator: but the miners Were dissatisfied

With the low wages And the risks.

O'bradovich: coal dust Is so fine and so volatile

That it can combust with Any little spark.

It can catch on fire, Cause an explosion.

And at one point In the history of this building,

They actually stopped using it Because there was so much dust

Being created, And some spontaneous combustion

Being created, And some spontaneous combustion

With that dust That created some issues.

*

Narrator: inside the mine Was even more deadly.

Sturgill: The leading cause of death

Here at portal 31 Was by roof falls,

And, believe it or not, A lot of coal cart accidents,

Of men being run over or pinned Against the rib by a coal cart.

Of men being run over or pinned Against the rib by a coal cart.

The air will kill you --

Miners could contract Black lung.

There's a lot of different ways

That a man or woman Can perish in a mine.

Narrator: the owners of lynch Refuse to compromise

The efficiency Of their production,

But the miners were gearing up For a fight.

*

Narrator: by the 1930s, The coal miners of lynch

In harlan county, kentucky,

Were growing restless.

No amount of grandiose Town planning

Could make up for the dangers And low wages of mining.

Meigs: there was always conflict Between miners and owners,

And their owners often respond To that conflict

And their owners often respond To that conflict

With overwhelming force.

Narrator: skirmishes broke out Across harlan county.

Meigs: this is where battles Between the coal companies

And the miners came to a head.

We had these clashes between Miners fighting for more rights

And owners trying to keep up Production and keep wages low.

*

Narrator: In lynch, rumor has it

Narrator: In lynch, rumor has it

That the violence Didn't end there.

One eyewitness told Nick sturgill

What she believes She saw back in the 1930s.

Sturgill: she would be sitting Out on the porch

And company officials would walk Or ride up black mountain

With known union members Or union sympathizers,

What have you, And after a few minutes,

She would hear gunshots.

And a few minutes later,

The company officials Would come down the mountain,

The company officials Would come down the mountain,

And they would come alone.

Narrator: no one knows for sure What happened

In those troubled times.

The mine owners eventually Quashed the discord

And the enormous underground Complex at lynch

Continued to produce coal For many more years.

Sturgill: total mileage of Tunnels in this mine,

If I had to guess,

Would be upwards or exceed A thousand miles.

During the height of U.S. Steel's operations

During the height of U.S. Steel's operations

Here at portal 31, On any given day,

You would have approximately 1,500 men on one shift.

Narrator: but this boom time Could not last forever.

The last piece of coal left The colossal portal 31 in 1963.

And the other mines in lynch Closed

During the following decades.

Sturgill: U.S. Steel pulled out of here

Sturgill: U.S. Steel pulled out of here

Simply because They pretty much mined out

What they could mine easily And economically,

But also because, you know, This coal was needed for steel.

Well, you know, In the last few decades,

Steel is really not in demand Like it used to be

During world wars or during The industrial revolution

Or the building of skyscrapers Or anything like that,

So this grade of coal is just Not sought after as it once was.

So this grade of coal is just Not sought after as it once was.

By the late '80s, The economics were changing,

And the mines Eventually shut down.

Sturgill: In those 46 and a half years,

U.S. Steel, they mined Approximately 120 million tons

Of coal here.

*

Narrator: today, this ghost town Echoes with the endeavors

Narrator: today, this ghost town Echoes with the endeavors

Of the industrious residents Who mined this land.

Sturgill: a lot of people Tend to forget

The blood, sweat, and tears,

The struggle that these men Put up with every single day

To bring this rock Out of the ground.

*

*

Narrator: In the city of kobe in japan,

Narrator: In the city of kobe in japan,

Buildings stand Tightly-packed together,

But one empty structure Looms above the rest.

*

Bell: right at the edge Of the city,

Suddenly, the buildings stop

And this hill just climbs up Away from you.

Selwood: it's heavily wooded With very, very dense foliage,

And so it's really extraordinary To find in the middle of it

This striking, Decrepit building.

Auerbach: it's like something Out of a sci-fi movie --

Auerbach: it's like something Out of a sci-fi movie --

Where it's half man-made And half just taken over.

By nature.

Narrator: The only way to reach it

Is to step on board The old funicular railway.

Utsumi: [ speaking japanese ]

Interpreter: above here, There's a structure

That's about 90 years old.

The building sits on top Of a very high precipice

With an incredible view Over the whole of kobe city.

*

*

Narrator: the unrivaled position The site holds was matched

Only by its elaborate interiors.

Auerbach: the decoration here Is fantastic.

So many brilliant details, And you can tell, in its time,

This place must have been Absolutely amazing,

But now it is falling to pieces.

*

Utsumi: [ speaking japanese ]

Interpreter: The building has suffered With all sorts of events

Interpreter: The building has suffered With all sorts of events

Over the years.

Selwood: it really looks like It's been through wars or hell,

But the question is, What ended this place?

*

*

Narrator: from the top of The railway on maya mountain,

A solitary path leads towards The old, abandoned structure.

*

*

Utsumi kenichi works For the heritage group

Now in charge of the building.

Utsumi: [ speaking japanese ]

Interpreter: originally, Maya mountain

Was a religious site.

Then, a large temple called Tenjoji temple was built here,

And it needed a funicular To bring all the materials up.

After that, many visitors Used the funicular

To come up to worship,

To come up to worship,

So this structure was built to Welcome them when they arrived.

Narrator: The original art deco features

Point to the early ambition Of this place,

Which opened in 1929.

Utsumi: [ speaking japanese ]

Interpreter: In japan, at that time,

Art deco was seen As futuristic --

It was the latest cultural Import from the west,

And this building reflects That fashionable trend.

Auerbach: there's a lot of Enthusiasm about the future

And a lot of a design aesthetic Really reflects

That machine-age perspective.

You see it in new york, In paris, in london,

With these beautiful lines

Trying to imitate the same Clean lines of a locomotive

Or an airplane.

Auerbach: that style, you see it All over japan,

And that enthusiasm is expressed In this building as well.

*

*

Utsumi: [ speaking japanese ]

Interpreter: over there, Around the stage,

It's designed with curves -- That's the style.

If I had been alive at the time, I would have loved

To have seen it In all its glory.

Narrator: this vision of Modernity was the maya club --

Boasting public baths, A restaurant, and a theater,

This was a destination In its own right.

Utsumi: [ speaking japanese ]

Interpreter: This is the screening room.

It used to be a cinema, where They showed films every day.

Chandeliers hung from The ceiling,

And there was a red carpet On the floor.

This was a place where people in Kobe came to enjoy themselves.

Most people who visited Weren't rich or anything close.

This place was for everyone.

Utsumi: [ speaking japanese ]

Utsumi: [ speaking japanese ]

Auerbach: you can still see The sublime level of decoration

And the intellectual energy That went into this place --

It must have been marvelous In its heyday.

Narrator: It was built on the promise of A prosperous future.

But the rumble of war,

Which could be heard In the distance,

Began to threaten The hilltop haven.

Bell: those rooms that had been Packed -- the grand dining hall,

Bell: those rooms that had been Packed -- the grand dining hall,

The entertainment room, Once filled with people,

Slowly began to quieten And empty out.

*

Narrator: during the early Decades of the 20th century,

Japan had been pursuing A mission of imperial expansion.

They entered The second world war

After attacking the u.S. In december 1941.

Japan's mainland cities Were in direct line of fire

Japan's mainland cities Were in direct line of fire

When the u.S. Fought back in 1945.

The skies above kobe were filled with u.S. Bombers.

Tons of explosives Were dropped on the city.

Auerbach: so in The last few months of the war,

This city is devastated.

Narrator: almost 9,000 people

And three square miles Of kobe were obliterated.

And three square miles Of kobe were obliterated.

The destruction went right To the foot of maya mountain.

The club itself escaped The worst of the carnage

And it would soon Prove invaluable.

*

*

Narrator: sitting high above Kobe, the maya club

Survived the u.S. Bombing raids Of the second world war.

Now its time of national service Was about to begin.

Utsumi: [ speaking japanese ]

Interpreter: so, this was The guest room floor

For the original facility.

After the war, soldiers Who came back from overseas

After the war, soldiers Who came back from overseas

And those people Who lost their homes in kobe

Began living here In these rooms.

Utsumi: [ speaking japanese ]

*

Auerbach: so this site is turned Into a kind of barracks,

And they can use this as a base

From which they search For their lost family members

Amidst the devastation Of what used to be kobe.

Selwood: their task -- their Terrible task was to try to find

Selwood: their task -- their Terrible task was to try to find

In all of the rubble Their families and their lives,

And to try And put those back together.

*

Narrator: After somehow making it out The other side of the war years

For this building,

Soon there was hope For a brighter future.

Selwood: yes, it was damaged And derelict,

But, actually, throwing A little bit of money at it,

It could be brought back To its glory days,

But with a slight twist As a hotel.

But with a slight twist As a hotel.

Auerbach: the whole site's been Restored to its former glory --

It's vibrant, it's luxurious, And people can once again

Enjoy these magnificent views Of the city.

Narrator: but as the damage writ Large across the building shows,

This story has No fairy tale ending.

Just when it looked As its future was assured,

Disaster struck again.

Disaster struck again.

Narrator: the year was 1967. The storm was typhoon billie.

*

Auerbach: a typhoon hits kobe,

Killing hundreds and causing Catastrophic mudslides.

Those mudslides damaged The building beyond repair.

It probably could Have been fixed,

But the new owners, The cost was just too much.

So it's abandoned again.

It had a second life, But it was painfully brief.

It had a second life, But it was painfully brief.

Utsumi: [ speaking japanese ]

Interpreter: those mudslides Came inside here.

It was such a mess That they couldn't run it

As a hotel anymore.

Narrator: While the site has seen a few Other short-lived uses

Through the years, It would never fully recover

From this devastating Natural catastrophe.

*

*

Now being watched over

By the maya mountain Revitalization association,

This building is about To enter a new phase.

Utsumi: [ speaking japanese ]

Interpreter: I was born and bred In this city,

And this building Has always been here.

I believe tangible things will Eventually return to nature,

So I want to protect them.

So I want to protect them.

*

Narrator: in a blustery Scottish estuary,

A world-famous structure Straddles frosty, deep water.

*

Auerbach: The first thing you notice

Is this big red giant Of engineering.

Is this big red giant Of engineering.

This is a very dangerous place To build a bridge.

Narrator: it towers over A craggy outcrop.

Auerbach: in the middle of This enormous estuarial river,

You find this tiny rocky island.

There's all sorts of things Tucked away around the edges --

There's quite a lot going on.

Narrator: An insignificant structure

At the base of the mighty bridge

Could hold the key to This small island's importance,

Could hold the key to This small island's importance,

And it's linked to a fatal Disaster that rocked a nation.

*

This waterway is known As the firth of forth.

Auerbach: the size and depth of This estuary made it

Scotland's most important Trade artery for centuries.

*

Narrator: Historian ron morris

To the abandoned island Of inchgarvie,

To the abandoned island Of inchgarvie,

Which sits below The forth bridge.

Auerbach: "Inchgarvie" Translates as "Rough island,"

And this place really Lives up to the name.

And this place really Lives up to the name.

The currents are terrible,

The waves crash into it,

It's cold, terrifying, And claustrophobic.

*

Narrator: yet, for centuries,

People have gone To great lengths

To make use of this inhospitable Piece of rock.

But why?

*

Narrator: on the east coast Of scotland,

A small, rugged island

Sits in the middle of the Once-indomitable firth of forth.

Evidence on the ground suggests

That the scots have Inhabited inchgarvie

Since the late 1400's.

Nusbacher: people have been Building here,

Clearly with an eye to defending This bare, rocky island.

Narrator: In the days when the only way

To cross this estuary Was by boat,

Inchgarvie was A strategically-important

Staging post.

In 1491, king james of scotland Granted a local laird

In 1491, king james of scotland Granted a local laird

The right to build a fort here.

But inchgarvie's ruins show

That someone has defended This estuary much more recently.

Narrator: The newer fortifications

Date back to The first world war.

Auerbach: the first thing you Notice is a gun emplacement,

Which is obviously 20th century, And the gun battery faces east,

Which would be towards The north sea,

Towards the entryway To this estuarial river.

Narrator: yet the disaster Linked to this place

Came not in wartime, But in peace.

Came not in wartime, But in peace.

40 years earlier, The advancing age of invention

Meant that scotland's Firth of forth

Had to be conquered.

Barratt: the u.K. Was exploding In trade and transportation.

The railway boom kicked off Big style,

And goods and people were moving All over the u.K.

But the firth of forth is A huge, deep water channel,

But the firth of forth is A huge, deep water channel,

Is an unsurmountable Obstruction.

To get from one side To the other

Would be a 40-mile detour Or a tricky trip on the ferry.

So they commissioned a bridge, But there was a problem.

Narrator: The depth of the estuary

Made it very difficult to build.

*

Narrator: in the 19th century, Inchgarvie was bought

By the forth bridge Railway company,

To provide a foundation For a bridge.

What you see on the surface Is just a tenth of it,

But the geology Underneath the water,

Means that rocks extend out.

Narrator: over millennia,

Glacier ice scoured away Soft layers of rock,

Leaving behind hard, rocky Outcrops like inchgarvie.

Leaving behind hard, rocky Outcrops like inchgarvie.

And that provided A solid foundation

In order to get the cantilever

For the center of The firth bridge.

Auerbach: There was a natural column --

A stone foundation right there

In the middle of The firth of forth --

Inchgarvie.

It was like a gift From the gods.

Narrator: but an abandoned pier Points to a complication.

Narrator: but an abandoned pier Points to a complication.

Nusbacher: if you look at The bottom of the bridge,

There's like a stump, As if an extra caisson

Had been built And then discarded.

Narrator: a caisson is the first Step in building a bridge --

This watertight structure allows The foundations to be laid.

This watertight structure allows The foundations to be laid.

Nusbacher: the geology of the Region here makes it very hard

To successfully build a bridge.

You've got to build caissons,

Float them to just The right spot,

And then sink them deeply Onto the sea floor

In order to build the footings For your bridge.

Here on the island, we can see

That somebody has started To put caissons down.

That somebody has started To put caissons down.

*

Narrator: the explanation For the abandoned caisson

Lies 30 miles north

On another windy Scottish estuary -- the tay.

Here, the celebrated engineer Thomas bouch

Had built the tay bridge.

Barratt: sir thomas bouch,

He designs caissons, The ability to sink a ring

Into a water body And then put concrete inside it

Into a water body And then put concrete inside it

So you can build up These supports.

Narrator: his next commission Was to design another bridge

To span the firth of forth.

Narrator: bouch's new design was Hailed as the wonder of the age

Until the howling winds Of scotland

Sent dozens of helpless souls Into the drink.

*

Narrator: In the mid-19th century,

One of britain's Most famous engineers

Had been commissioned To build the forth bridge,

But disaster was about to strike One of his earlier designs

In a nearby estuary.

Barratt: one night, the wind got Up really quite strong,

So a big, big load from Sort of a horizontal direction

So a big, big load from Sort of a horizontal direction

Pushing against the tay bridge

That thomas bouch Hadn't accounted for.

*

Narrator: the central section of The tay bridge collapsed.

The train continued to carry on And plunged back into the water.

Narrator: More than 70 people died

In the tay estuary that night.

Auerbach: this was bad news For the forth bridge.

Auerbach: this was bad news For the forth bridge.

The future of that new Rail bridge was now in doubt.

Could they continue building The bridge

Using the design of this Now-disgraced architect,

Or should they abandon The project?

Well, they decided to scrap it.

Barratt: all you can see now In what's left behind

Is one pillar Sticking up out of the sea.

Thomas bouch was devastated, His reputation was ruined,

Thomas bouch was devastated, His reputation was ruined,

And he never recovered, And he died a disgrace.

*

A few years later, A new bridge was commissioned

And it still stands to this day.

*

Narrator: the forth bridge Is now one of three

To span this estuary.

Narrator: in the north of the Mediterranean island sardinia

Is a dramatic range Of rocky mountains.

At its heart is The imperious granite massive

Of monte limbara.

*

Bell: you ascend up this Winding, steep mountain road

Bell: you ascend up this Winding, steep mountain road

Until you reach the peak, And then in a clearing,

These six massive structures Appear out of nowhere.

*

Meigs: all of a sudden, you see

This compound Of massive antennas,

Pointed off in all directions.

Some very large and ambitious Communications center

Was built here, But what was it for?

Narrator: at almost 4,500 feet Above sea level,

This mountain creates Its own microclimate.

This mountain creates Its own microclimate.

Bell: This place is at high altitude.

The weather can turn On a knife edge --

One minute, It's brilliant sunshine,

And the next, You're enveloped by cloud.

Meigs: they must have had An excellent reason

To want to build this kind of Very ambitious

High tech facility In exactly this spot.

Bell: inside, you have row upon Row of electronics equipment,

Bell: inside, you have row upon Row of electronics equipment,

Massive generators, Living quarters,

And of course, These six huge dishes.

Whoever built this had access To some serious resources.

Narrator: Kept top secret for decades,

Speculation over the type of Operations that took place here

Has always been rife, And rumors still abound.

Nusbacher: The locals have no details,

Nusbacher: The locals have no details,

So the locals make up Their own stories to explain

This mysterious hulking presence On top of the mountain.

*

*

Marcello moretto remembers well

What this site looked like Years ago.

*

Moretto: [ speaking italian ]

Interpreter: it is rather weird To see it today,

Interpreter: it is rather weird To see it today,

But at the time it was Abandoned,

It was left in perfect Working condition,

Even though, of course, It was no longer in use.

Narrator: he works for An environmental agency

Now trying to clean up The noxious mess

Left by this decaying Infrastructure.

Moretto: [ speaking italian ]

Interpreter: from An environmental standpoint,

Especially from A forestry standpoint,

This is a dump of Basically iron materials.

Nusbacher: this is built at The top of a mountain --

Everything that happens up here Flows downstream,

And as this place Starts to disintegrate,

It becomes a toxic threat To people living down below.

Narrator: the long-term Environmental impact

Was the last thing On the minds

Of those constructing This complex back in 1966,

When the world was split by Two bitterly-opposed ideologies.

When the world was split by Two bitterly-opposed ideologies.

Nusbacher: it is no exaggeration To say that this is a moment

When the nato countries --

The united states And its european allies --

Are convinced that any moment, The soviets are going to attack.

This place is born out Of a very real expectation

That the cold war

Is going to turn Into world war iii any day.

Is going to turn Into world war iii any day.

*

Narrator: so who built these Decaying behemoths to gain

The upper hand in the escalation Of world war iii?

*

Narrator: in the 1960s,

The world was in the depths Of the cold war,

With the u.S. And the soviet union

Vying for supremacy.

Meigs: the threat of nuclear war

Was looming very intensely At all times.

Both sides knew they needed Excellent communications,

Both to know what was happening,

Both to know what was happening,

But also, potentially, To prevent a misfire,

You know, To prevent a false alarm.

Narrator: these six vast dishes Date back to that time.

Inside, rusting machinery Reveals

The identity of their owners.

Built by the u.S. Air force, This was one of nato's

Most secret Radio communication centers.

The monte limbara station Was designed

To plug a weak spot In nato defenses.

To plug a weak spot In nato defenses.

*

Nusbacher: Nato's southern flank --

That is the nato countries

Facing south, Towards north africa --

Was always the soft Underbelly of nato.

It was always a place where The soviets, where their allies

Might be able to strike.

Narrator: The location of this facility

Betrays nato's Clandestine intention.

*

*

Meigs: the island of sardinia Is beautifully placed

For this kind of communication.

For one thing, you're sitting In the mediterranean

Between italy and spain. To the east,

It points to a similar station In naples, to the west,

To the island of minorca, Off the coast of spain,

And via those, Ultimately around the world.

*

Narrator: this station was part Of a vast network

Narrator: this station was part Of a vast network

Capable of transmitting Crucial classified messages

Over thousands of miles.

The ultra high frequency devices And abandoned technology

Found at this site show How this was overcome.

Nusbacher: this was A microwave communications base

That used microwaves To communicate

By using the troposphere, Part of the atmosphere,

To send microwaves Over the horizon.

To send microwaves Over the horizon.

And the best way to communicate Long distances at this time

Was called troposcatter, Or tropospheric scatter.

Narrator: until the 1950s,

Radio communication beyond The curvature of the earth,

Which blocked the signal, Was impossible.

With the invention Of troposcatter,

Stations like monte limbara

Could transmit To a receiver station

Out of the line of sight.

Out of the line of sight.

By using particles six miles up In the earth's lower atmosphere

To reflect microwave signals.

Meigs: that system can amplify The signal,

Send it up again, And repeat the process.

So instead of sending your Radio signal, you know,

30, 40, 50 miles, Now you can send it 250 miles.

Narrator: that meant fewer Costly relay stations

And much faster Long-distance communication.

And much faster Long-distance communication.

Nusbacher: we were ready to Coordinate the nuclear forces

That we're going to have To smash a soviet advance

Into western europe.

The amount of communication And coordination

That was required By the supreme headquarters,

Allied powers europe, by nato,

By the vast american commitment To defending europe,

All of that required an immense Amount of coordination.

All of that required an immense Amount of coordination.

Meigs: thankfully, They never had to,

But the fact that we were ready,

Maybe, is part of the reason, On both sides,

Why the cold war Never turned hot.

*

Narrator: this base did play An active role in war --

A u.S. Fighter bomber Was supposedly guided

By the monte limbara antennae On a controversial mission.

By the monte limbara antennae On a controversial mission.

Nusbacher: in 1986, a disco In berlin is bombed

By libyan-sponsored terrorists,

And american servicemen Are involved.

President reagan orders Muammar gaddafi,

The libyan dictator,

That his family compound Be bombed by american aircraft.

*

Narrator: gaddafi's Private residence is struck

And dozens of civilians Are also killed.

And dozens of civilians Are also killed.

The claim that this station Facilitated the strike, however,

Remains unfounded.

*

Even when the iron curtain Was raised across europe,

This station had not yet Outlived its usefulness.

Nusbacher: as late as operation Desert shield/desert storm,

In 1990-91,

The u.S. Is still, to some Extent using these troposcatter

The u.S. Is still, to some Extent using these troposcatter

Stations to communicate Around the mediterranean.

And it is such an easy system To use that you are able

To dial troops in theater, Using defense switch network,

As though you're dialing around The corner back in the states.

*

Meigs: this system is still Very much in use,

And useful during that period When all kinds of secure traffic

And useful during that period When all kinds of secure traffic

Had to travel around The mediterranean europe.

Narrator: the monte limbara Station was retired in 1993.

Meigs: it had been made obsolete By satellite communications,

Which are so much easier --

They don't require All these bases

All over the country, So much more secure.

All you need is a few satellites Orbiting the earth

And you can really communicate With any point on the planet.

Bell: when the u.S. Forces left,

It was like they just vanished Into thin air.

It was like they just vanished Into thin air.

But what they left behind Wasn't just documents,

Machinery, and equipment -- It was an ecological nightmare.

*

Narrator: for the locals, There was one final insult.

Bell: as this revelation of Exactly how much the u.S. Paid

The italian government

For use of this mountaintop site For 27 years --

Just five lira a year.

Just five lira a year.

Narrator: That's less than one dollar.

*

Environmentalists Like marcello moretto

Are attempting To clean up this site

And transform it into a place Of historical significance.

Moretto: [ speaking italian ]

Interpreter: we would like this Place to become a museum

About the cold war.

About the cold war.

A museum of industrial and Military archeology.

It would have Its own importance.

Narrator: in a more recent turn Of events,

Tropospheric scattering Is experiencing a resurgence,

And military experts see renewed Potential for sites like this.

Nusbacher: As nato weakens

In the face of American disinterest,

As russia becomes more powerful,

As russia becomes more powerful,

It is not difficult To see a scenario

In which someone desiring To dominate the mediterranean

Could deploy Antisatellite weapons

And could create a situation

In which this mountaintop Might again

Be useful As a communication station.

*