Posted on Wed, Sep. 9, 2009

Give me (bomb) shelter

By William Kenny

Times Staff Writer

The Day After affected countless Americans in equally as many ways upon the made-for-TV movie's 1983 debut on ABC.

Depicting the aftermath of a full-scale nuclear war between the United States and the Soviet Union, the controversial Emmy Award-winning film prompted many viewers to call network-sponsored counseling hotlines. Some folks set up candlelight peace vigils in their communities, while many others gathered in and around Kansas City, Mo., to tour the still-thriving locales decimated by bombs and fallout in the movie.

Meanwhile, back in Feasterville, Bucks County, young George Welhaf III began developing a shrewd business concept. Actually, it pretty much started out as a gut reaction by the 11-year-old.

"I remember at the time, they warned that young children should not view it," his father, George Jr., said recently. "George was a mature young man, so I let him. The next thing I know, cans of food started disappearing from our shelves."

The family later discovered that young George was planning his own bomb shelter.

More than two decades later and George III is still building emergency shelters. Only now, he also has his dad and older brother Geoffrey involved in the business.

About five years ago, they started Green Eye Technology, which distributes and installs what they believe are the strongest and safest commercially available underground emergency shelters in the world.

THEY'RE TOUGH AS NAILS

Manufactured in Texas by Radius Engineering Inc., the custom-built emergency shelters are designed to withstand nuclear, biological and chemical attacks; natural disasters including hurricanes, tornadoes and wild fires; and possibly even alien invasions, if you believe in that sort of thing.

Green Eye Technology, which is still based in Feasterville, is the master distributor throughout the United States and beyond.

George Welhaf Jr. claims there are already 850 in place around the country - and the market continues to grow.

"The primary concern is the level of threat related to terrorism, followed closely by environmental concerns," said the elder Welhaf, who handles the sales end of the company, while his sons manage construction and information systems.

"The majority of our clients are people who are starting to realize that maybe we're not as safe as we once thought we were."

Tours of fully built, furnished and stocked units are hard to come by, Welhaf says, because those who buy them don't like to advertise, so to speak. Meanwhile, they are few and far between, anyway.

However, those who make it down to the Radius plant outside of Dallas can do a walk-through. For others, the Green Eye Web site, wwww.greeneyetech.com, provides all of the minute details in text, photos and schematic drawings.

The smallest unit available is about 23 feet long, 9 feet in diameter and shaped like a giant watermelon. It's made of a proprietary fiberglass composite that is more durable than concrete or steel. It can shelter up to 10 people with supplies for about a year, according to Welhaf.

Generally, the shelters are buried at least 8 to 10 feet below the ground surface.

ALL THE COMFORTS OF HOME

Even the most basic units have bunk-style sleeping, a sink and stove, a combination shower/bathroom and an air ventilation/filtration system. Extras could include a ham radio, police scanner, wireless Internet and telephone antennas, video security systems and even decorative interior paneling.

Price-wise, most consumers will consider one of the shelters as a lifetime investment.

"If they have the money to buy a second home down the shore, they have enough money to buy one of these and protect their families," Welhaf said.

Doomsayers aren't the only ones scooping up the shelters. Considering the prices involved, many clients hail from rich and famous circles, such as Wall Street tycoons, pop music stars and pro sports figures.

Organizations are buying into the concept too, with companies, hospitals and even government agencies pulling the trigger on deals. The largest systems designed by the manufacturer are capable of housing hundreds of people for years at a time, according to Welhaf.

Other purchasers are more interested in securing things like paper and computer archives or rare artifacts like expensive works of art.

The distributors must stay on the lookout for those who would use their product for devious purposes, however. You don't have to be Batman, or the Penquin, even, to figure out the felonious potential of an unseen, uncharted underground hideout.

IT HAS TO BE LEGAL

"They're stealth and they're impenetrable," Welhaf said. "In the course of the project, if Green Eye Tech finds that they're being used illegally or anything like that, we'll pull the plug."

On the other hand, Welhaf and his sons are putting in extra effort to make the products more accessible to common people, even if they don't have a big enough backyard to install one of their own.

"We have a number of different people in different economic (situations) who are interested in these things," the distributor said. "We're trying to assemble a database of people who are interested like that."

If there are enough takers, Green Eye would like to build a "global arc community" in which members could buy a share in an underground shelter.

"We find that might be another way of getting people in who want to be in," Welhaf said.

In the last five years, he and his sons have discovered that there are plenty of potential clients around who already fear for their personal safety.

"We don't go around crying that the sky is falling. We're not into that," Welhaf said. "But if you have a concern, we have a product for you."

Visit www.greeneyetech.com or call 215-352-5179 for information about Radius underground shelter systems.

Reporter William Kenny can be reached at 215-354-3031 or bkenny@phillynews.com