Interest in underground shelters spiked in Russia after the country began partial mobilization efforts in September, amid the conflict in Ukraine, RBK reported, citing local private bunker manufacturers.
“After September 21 [when President Putin announced the launch of the draft], the demand increased sharply. The number of requests on our website grew by 430%,” Nikita Malezhik, the founder of the BunkerHouse project, told the outlet on Monday.
Nothing of the kind has happened before, he said, adding that some customers wanted to get their own bunkers immediately. “People called and said that they needed a shelter for nine people tomorrow,” which was impossible as construction usually takes two or three months, the entrepreneur recalled.
Obviously, not all of the requests resulted in building the actual bunkers, Malezhik pointed out. Currently, the hype has decreased and demand has subsequently subsided, he added.
Danila Andreyev, the CEO of shelter manufacturer Spetsgeoproekt, also said that demand “increased by at least three times” after partial mobilization was announced. READ MORE: German president accused of staging Ukraine bomb shelter incident
Interest in private bunkers has generally been higher than usual since Russia launched its military operation in Ukraine in late February, he said.
Andreyev pointed out that the firm had several orders from people in areas close to the Russian-Ukrainian border, with many of those people asking them to turn the cellars of their homes into bomb shelters.
The Russian border regions of Belgorod, Kursk, and Bryansk have come under frequent Ukrainian attacks during the conflict, with shells, mortars, and drones targeting both residential areas and energy infrastructure, resulting in destruction, injuries, and several civilian deaths.
During the draft, men of military age opted to leave the country for neighboring Kazakhstan, Georgia, and other places to avoid conscription.
Partial mobilization in Russia concluded in early November, with Putin saying that 300,000 people had been recruited as planned, with another 18,000 others volunteering to go to Ukraine. According to the president, around 50,000 draftees have already been sent to the front lines, while the rest are still undergoing training.
Credit: RT News