October 13, 2025
SEOUL – Seoul plans to build its first nuclear bunker beneath a high-rise apartment complex within the next three years, news reports said Monday.
The Seoul Metropolitan Government and Seoul Housing and Communities Corp. are reportedly planning to build an underground shelter designed to protect residents from external nuclear, biological or chemical attacks in a public housing complex in Garak-dong, Songpa-gu district, which is scheduled for completion in 2028.
The large-scale complex comprises 16 apartment buildings spanning three basement levels, up to 22 floors above ground and a total of 1,240 residential units. It will be built on the former site of the Seongdong Detention Center, which was relocated to Munjeong-dong in 2017.
Located on the third basement level of this complex, the envisioned bunker will cover a total area of 2,147 square meters and accommodate up to 1,020 people at once.
The refuge area will be equipped with air ventilation, water storage, supply and sanitation systems, enabling occupants to survive for up to 14 days in the event of external nuclear, biological or chemical attacks. When not in use for emergencies, the facility will serve as a community fitness center.
The bunker will be the first of its kind built by a local government for civilian use, equipped with nuclear protection capabilities.
Escalating military threats from North Korea and global security instability, including the prolonged Russia-Ukraine war, were cited as key factors behind the project.
“Because modern threats are different from those in the past, we’re launching this project to expand the role of civil defense shelters. We hope it will mark a new step toward better protecting citizens and improving Seoul’s security system,” a city official said.
The city government previously designated the construction of civil defense shelters against nuclear, biological and chemical attacks as a key project under its “Defense Seoul 2030” plan, announced in March last year.
