Project Iceworm and the labyrinth of tunnels dubbed ‘the safest place on Earth’

Deep below the thick ice of Greenland lies a labyrinth of tunnels that were once thought to be the safest place on Earth in case of a war.

First created during the Cold War, Project Iceworm saw the US plan to store hundreds of ballistic missiles in a system of tunnels dubbed ‘Camp Century’.

Construction began in 1959 – and it is believed US military chiefs had hoped to launch a nuclear attack on the Soviet Union during the height of Cold War tensions.

But less than a decade after it was built, the base was abandoned in 1967 after researchers realised the glacier was moving.

Now, the sprawling sub-zero tunnels have been brought back to attention as tensions continue to escalate around the world, again fueling worries of a third world war.

The underground three-kilometre network of tunnels played host to labs, shops, a cinema, a hospital, and accommodation for hundreds of soldiers.

A map of the tunnel system shows all the available amenities (Picture: Kristian H. Nielsen)

Supplies were transported through ‘Sno-Train’s’ with massive wheels for the icy terrain (Picture: Getty)

And war has been at the forefront of many Brit’s minds, as the country’s top military chief recently warned that civilians may be conscripted in the event of a war with Russia.

In a speech, General Sir Patrick Sanders said the UK was woefully underequipped to fight an all-out war, and said the government may need to ‘mobilise the nation’ and start training a civilian army.

Although the government has since denied planning to conscript the public, they have not denied planning for war.

But the icy Greenland site is not without its dangers – it continues to store nuclear waste.

Assuming the site would remain frozen in perpetuity, the US army removed the nuclear reactor installed on site but allowed waste – equivalent to the mass of 30 Airbus A320 airplanes – to be entombed under the snow.

But other sites around the world – without nuclear waste – could also serve as a safe haven in case of World War 3.

Construction on the mysterious base began in 1959 (Picture: Getty)

Trenches were cut with major machinery (Picture: Getty)

Ominous warnings from Russia, missile strikes in the Middle East, unease in China, and tensions brought up by the Israel-Hamas conflict have taken the world into ‘a new era’ of international relations.

Wood Norton is a tunnel network running deep into the Worcestershire forest, originally bought by the BBC during World War 2 in case of a crisis in London.

Peters Mountain in Virginia, USA, serves as one of several secret centres also known as AT&T project offices, which are essential for the US government’s continuity planning.

Further north in the states, Raven Rock Mountain Complex in Pennsylvania is a base that could hold up to 1,400 people.

And Cheyenne Mountain Complex in El Paso County, Colorado, is an underground complex boasting five chambers of reservoirs for fuel and water – and in one section there’s even reportedly an underground lake.

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