5 Project Civil Air Defense

Chen Xin's construction of his bunker was actually illegal. In terms of procedures, he neither filed for a building permit nor obtained civil approval from his local government.

However, in the face of the imminent disaster, the whole country had entered a state of emergency. All manpower and material resources of the municipal departments had been diverted to the ongoing civil air defense projects. The state also encouraged its people to dig up bunkers, so no one paid any attention to Chen Xin's underground project.

The civil air defense project was a nationwide project that Vermillion had been working on since the 1970s. Although it was hidden from the public eye, there were actually many civil air defense projects underway in major cities. People just did not pay much attention.

For example, it would seem there was nothing out of the ordinary regarding the underground parking lots of shopping malls or residential areas except for the heavy lead-grey iron doors at its exits. However, that would indeed make it part of a civil air defense project. It could be used as an air-raid shelter or temporary refuge in event of a foreign invasion or nuclear war.

And now, despite possible meteorite impacts, the country was not only strengthening its defenses but also vigorously transforming those civil air defense projects into bunkers that could accommodate residents for a long time.

Due to the high temperature generated by the impact, dust clouds, and toxic haze that would engulf the atmosphere. Earth's surface would become unsuitable for human survival for the next 100 years as temperatures dropped. The only thing left for humans on the surface would be extended periods of darkness and subzero temperatures, which may last the next few decades or even hundreds of years.

Therefore, under such circumstances, the underground civil air defense project turned bunkers would become the last standing home for human beings to survive and live in.

Originally, those civil air defense projects did not consider long-term residential use when constructed as they were designed only for short-term refuge during an attack.

Now that humans were more likely to have to live underground, it became necessary to overhaul those existing civil air defense projects.

Especially after a meteorite impact, it would bring about an intense but short heatwave and extremely cold weather, which heightened the requirements for the ventilation facilities of those civil air defense projects.

Therefore, while the state had joined forces with other countries in the world to actively respond to the imminent impact, municipalities and engineering personnel across the country had also been mobilized to upgrade and transform those civil air defense projects, as well as expand their holding capacities.

Large underground facilities such as subway stations and underground shopping malls were being planned to become future underground cities.

After all, a facility like a subway station that was buried deep underground and could be connected to other subway stations at the same time was the ideal choice for the base of an underground city.

That was actually one of the subway stations' predicted functions during its planning and construction.

It was known that when the Germans air-raided London during World War II, Londoners escaped the German bombing by hiding in subway stations.

In addition to the transformation of civil air defense projects, the stockpiling of various resources had also become the focus of the country's response to disasters.

Food would not be in short supply for the country in the foreseeable future. The country's food reserves were sufficient to last for three years, but most of the food was stored in designated granaries across the country. Now, it needed to be distributed from those granaries to bunkers across various cities.

All tasks were being carried out in a disciplined and orderly manner. Some people tried to take advantage of the chaos by instigating riots and looting supplies but were soon subdued by the army. After the state had announced a state of emergency, it was the army who were responsible for maintaining law and order instead of the police. Those who sought the death-penalty naturally had their wishes fulfilled.

Under the country's meticulous planning and stringent control, most of the bunkers had been completed on schedule, and material reserves had been put in place. The bunkers were at that time ready for civilians to move in.

Simultaneously, the population along coastal areas were evacuated inland, considering that the meteorite could hit the Pacific Ocean. Although this had caused serious losses to the national economy, in the face of a possible tsunami, the country could not bear to put the lives of hundreds of millions of people on the southeast coast at risk in return for economic benefit.

Just like the famous saying of our ancestors, "We live to fight another day". As long as people were alive, the civilization could be rebuilt; but if people were gone, who would take on that responsibility?

In just a few months, the country had to fabricate a plan to deal with meteorites as well as putting disaster-response measures in place across the country. Even in a country like Vermillion, where the government had a great influence, it must do its best. The country could only barely manage to complete the work on schedule if everyone worked in unison towards one goal.

On the other hand, in countries where the government was not in control, society had fallen into a state of collapse.

The order of small countries in Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and Latin America had entirely collapsed because their governments were unable to respond to a crisis of such magnitude. At that time, those communities had entered a state of disorder.

People in those areas would kill for a pack of food. Human life was not even as valuable as a piece of bread.

In those areas, humans had regressed to their most primitive state. It was to kill or be killed. The only thing they could think about was how to survive.

Even though the people in other areas where order was still intact thought the same way, the steps they took to ensure their survival were very different.

If it was before, other countries might still lend a hand to other regions in need, but now all countries were overwhelmed. Even the top five nations of Earth could only look after themselves in the face of the impending global catastrophe.

Even among the top five nations, only Vermillion was in the best condition. Its government had a high degree of control over the country. Although Britain and Gaul were not in a state of disorder, the society was still in utter chaos. There were large numbers of demonstrations and riots. Those events had put the governments of the two countries in a dire situation.

As for Russia, the situation was much better compared to Britain and Gaul. Especially as a former superpower, Russia retained most of the Red Army's legacy. With the blessings of its Soviet heritage, coupled with its unique geographical environment and climatic conditions, Russia did not experience much chaos, and its predicament was much better than that of Britain and Gaul.

On the other hand, the situation of the USA, the only superpower surviving on Earth, seemed a bit strange.