Hospital in the rock Budapest, Hungary - Civil Defense Fallout Shelters on Waymarking.com

The Hospital in the Rock Nuclear Bunker Museum (Sziklakórház Atombunker Múzeum) is part of an approximately 6-mile (10-km) stretch of interconnected caves and cellars beneath Buda Castle Hill. This museum is dedicated to a former secret emergency hospital and nuclear bunker.


The history of the emergency hospital goes back to World War II, when Castle District was part of the Government Quarter. The caves and tunnels were connected and fortified and used as an air raid shelter. On the orders of the Mayor of Budapest an emergency surgical hospital was also built within the caves beneath Buda Castle Hill. The hospital was actively used during WW II until July 1945 and then during the 1956 Revolution to treat wounded civilians and soldiers. Between 1958 and 1962 it was expanded to withstand potential chemical and nuclear attacks during the Cold War. The "Hospital in the Rock – Secret Emergency Hospital and Nuclear Bunker" opened to the public in 2008.

Source: visitbudapest.travel

Between 1958-62 the Hospital in the Rock was converted into a nuclear bunker. The safety-by-pass corridor was built, as well as a new ventilation system equipped with ay special gas filter, and also a water supply system attached to the River Danube. The construction work was led by Bakonyi Istvan. The heart of these machines are 2 Ganz Diesel engines and the attached generator, which are still operational to this day. This meant that the Hospital could have been used even in case of a black-out. In the event of a nuclear or chemical attack, the institution would have been able to accept survivors - at least in theory.

The fully prepared and modern hospital was still under the authority of Saint John’s Hospital. The original plan was that in a case of a nuclear or chemical attack, certain doctors and nurses would have gone there first to survive the attack. After 72 hours these doctors and nurses would have opened the hospital and treated other survivors. As an indicator of its modernity, there was already in the 60s an air-conditioning system in the institution, which is still in use. Because of the development of certain technical innovations (i.e. nuclear weapons) the Hospital in the Rock got developed fast. It was never formally decommissioned, so Saint John’s Hospital maintained it and the Civil Defence Forces used it as a store. Some doctors and nurses annually arrived at the hospital and went through Civil Defence Force practice. There was a housekeeping family living next to the Hospital who maintained the institution until 2004, under a strict bond of secrecy. Mr Mohácsi aired the place every day and maintained the electrical and mechanical systems. His wife cleaned, sterilized and changed the bed sheets every second week. From 2004 the task of periodical maintenance fell to the staff of Saint John’s Hospital. Between 2004-2006 the Krétakör Theatre Company occasionally used the place for performances. The hospital was specially opened to visitors in 2006 on the day of Cultural Heritage but construction work to turn the premises into its present form only began in 2007.

Source: (visit link)

Capacity of shelter: 200 Radiation monitoring equipment: yes

Visit Instructions:
To find one of the waymarks, you need a picture of the sign and of the inside with your GPS in the picture.

Recent Visits/Logs:

There are no logs for this waymark yet.