Here is the link to book online http://www.ramsgatetunnels.org/ and
what it says is.
About Tours
Tours are up to 1.25 kilometres and will last for
approximately 1 hour. You will be accompanied by a guide throughout.
Hard hats must be worn and personal lighting must be carried
in the Air Raid Tunnels. These will be provided at the start of your tour.
Sensible footwear is recommended, (flat shoes, boots). High
heals are not permitted.
The tunnels are at a constant temperature of around 11
degrees Celsius; they may appear cold in summer but warm in winter
Children 3 - 7 years are admitted free at the discretion of
the guides.
Pushchairs and wheelchairs may be difficult to operate and
are admitted at the guide’s discretion.
Photography is only permitted in the lit areas of the system
With the exception of Guide Dogs, animals are not permitted
in the tunnels
Ticket Prices
Adult
£5.00
Child 7 - 11 years
maximum 2 per adult
£3.00
Junior 12 - 16 years
£4.00
Senior 65+
£4.00
Advanced booking is strongly recommended but tickets can be
obtained at the tunnels subject to availability.
Here is the link to the book we publish about the tunnels http://www.michaelsbookshop.com/catalogue/the_ramsgate_tunnels__main_line_public_airraid_shelter___scenic_railway__.htm
And here a map of the tunnels, which should get big enough to read if you click on it
Took the tour around the tunnels today. It was brilliant. I spent far longer down there than I did when I visited the Turner Centre and it was far more interesting. The only thing that surprised me was how few people were queuing up to go in. Presumably, if they lived in Ramsgate when they were young they've all been down there already.
ReplyDeletePeter,
DeleteI suspect that the wearing of hard hats is a requirement of 'Ramsgate Tunnels' insurance. Maybe a wise condition bearing in that these days some punter may trip over a 1940's dog end and claim a zillion pound for accident compensation, with passive smoking thrown in for luck.
Let's hope they got all the asbestos removed
DeleteBe the same with every public building that had central heating installed before 1990 anon, so possibly it would be best not to go out.
DeleteSounds like you're saying nothing should be done about asbestos and what has central heating to do with anything
DeleteAnon I assumed it was common knowledge that the tunnels could not be opened without being properly decontaminated, which has happened.
DeletePretty much all of the large central heating boilers and a lot of the associated pipes in public buildings pre 1990 were lagged with asbestos
There is still a lot of decontamination going on, there have been strict regulations since 1990 and the situation since then has improved enormously, if you wanted to campaign about the issue you are twenty years too late.
Strange Michael on several points: 1990 boilers would have been removed by now. The Tunnels had asbestos in them until last year. Asbestos poisoning was recently highlighted as requiring more hospital funding etc. You seem to talk rot. Perhaps you should check the schools asbestos registers for how current the issue is - and what is being done about it. Perhaps the prevailing wind will blow asbestos fibres and air pollution away from Ramsgate so only Margate is poisoned?
DeleteAsbestos covered pipework and installations are still very common. Asbestos extant in a structure is not in and of itself a hazard. It is only when it's messed with or distrubed and the fibres are releases that it becomes dangerous, and even then, not all asbetos is horrifically dangerous.
DeleteIf a building has asbestos in it, it will have an asbestos register, that simply monitors it's condition. In the process of preparing the tunnels for opening to the public as Michael says, all the "at risk" asbestos will have been removed, and any remaining (if any at all) will be subject to yearly inspection.
Asbestos poisoning will and is balloning at the moment, as people who worked closely with it in the ship building and building trades get older. This figure will decline over the next few decades as people haven't worked in any uncontrolled way with it for 25+ years now.
Although 7:33 you are contradicting yourself: why should asbestos decline if it is not removed? And if it can be removed - and is - why isn't it and why monitor it if it is safe? Which buildings in Thanet have asbestos and a register?
DeleteSorry 8:57, I thought my post was clear, there are no contradictions in my post, let me explain.
DeleteThe instances of Mesothelioma (the lung disorder associated with Asbestos) will decline as those who worked unprotected and in close proximity to this substances get older, and pass away. There will be an inevitable bubble in the instances of the desease as those that were exposed become older, but as that exposure has all but ceased, the occurances of linked illnesses will obviously decline markedly.
It is not removed as a matter of course when found, unless it is likely to be disturbed in some way, or is in poor condition. Thus, stable/sealed instances of asbestos are monitored via registration, and yearly monitoring by various specialist companies, and not least, the insurer of the relevant building. In many cases, unless it's going to be disturbed, it's far safer to leave it alone until some kind of large building alteration deems it necessary to disturb, and thus remove it.
No idea shat so ever which buildings do or don't have asbestos in them. I would guess most pre 1970 building would have had some, how much is left, no idea.
I have been involved with with the problem of Asbetos in large buildings. The explanations from anon 9:24 are accurate in every detail. So 'asbestos anon' [Tim] please give it a rest.
DeleteThank you 9:35
DeleteThe contradiction though is why would asbestos cancer cases decline if asbestos is not removed? Imagine say a school with adbestos with new children exposed to it each year?
DeleteClearly infected cases decline as they die off although that's hardly the ideal
Anon, the asbestos is only dangerous when it is being worked in close proximity because you need the dust to be in your lungs for it to be a problem. Asbestos in a school is usually not a problem as long as it is not disturbed.
DeleteThere have not been many people in this country working in asbestos for a long time, hence that those who have are inevitably dying. There are few (if any) new cases caused by undisturbed asbestos in situ, and when it is time to renovate professional wear protective breathing apparatus to remove it.
Workers in the tunnels could be at risk, but the risk associated with any in situ asbestos, providing it have been properly checked as being safe, are non existent. So unless you are a plumber or electrician renovating old property, this isn't likely to be an issue even in old buildings.
Perhaps the asbestos expert and Tim obsessive at 9:35 could explain where to find the asbestos register if the other asbestos expert has no idea which buildings have asbestos?
DeleteNot sure Joe is correct: asbestos decays and fibres are then breathed in by people nearby. There are thoudands of new cases as its an ongoing disease not always diagnosed for years.
DeleteAnon, google is your friend. Read this (or, in fact any of the hundreds of pages on the subject) and stop spreading misinformation: http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201213/cmselect/cmeduc/writev/1056/m3.htm
Delete11:49, there is no contradiction what so ever.
DeleteAs posted, Asbestos is perfectly safe, if it's in a sealed and stable condition. It's only when fibres are released that it becomes a hazard. Googling the subject is one thing, but dealing with, and managing building containing asbestos really does provide a knowledge of the hazards relating to this product.
The people sadly suffering from mesothelioma (the cancer connected with asbestos) are the ones who worked upto their armpits in it in ship yards, and builders/plumbers who subsequently dealt with it before it's dangers became known. It was so common in the 60's and 70's that many still have sheds and garages with asbestos roofs, if not made of 100% white asbestos sheets, all perfectly safe, until someone decides it's a great idea to smash the old shed down with a hammer!
Who's old enough to remember the old Rawlplug puttey, that you used to wet, roll into a ball, and poke into holes to screw things into? Guess what, that was made of white asbestos!
It's not a question of it being ideal or otherwise 11:49, it's just simply a fact of life. Asbestos only now poses a risk if it's mishandled, and certainly in building that have public access, that is somewhat unlikly. No contamination will happen simply because asbestos ius present.
I wonder if those of you that are attempting to explain the truth of asbestos hazards realise who you are dealing with. He is well known on this blog. Presumably TG has moved on from Manston and now has a bee in his bonnet about the Tunnels and asbestos that will always defeat the rationale mind.
DeleteIt never hurts to put the correct information out there about asbestos 4:31, helps allay the fears of those who believe if they are within 100yards of it, they have only days to live.
DeleteA little knowledge (and google) and a dangerous thing sometimes.
And even the rational mind anon 4.31.
DeleteMichael, Yeah that n' all. Butt 'rationale' could also work if projected forward to in that I do not grasp the rationale behind the anon's ridiculous ramblings. Which is the reason what I choosed it. Or maybe the spell checker did. Ration however would not work other than I think I have suffered my ration of TG. I understand your rationale in bringing this matter to my attention.
DeleteSorry 4.59 a moment of temporal list and couldn’t resist, I am afraid poor old anon, possibly TG gets into a bit of a tangle with engineering and science and fails to understand that the idea of the blogs is to engage in a debate.
DeleteI honestly don’t know what it is he wants to happen, whether he thinks the other people commenting here offer solutions to what he perceives as dangers to mankind or whether he just wants us all to agree with him and concede that we are die in the very near future.
I suppose it must be very difficult if normal debate with ordinary people eludes one and all one can do is to pop up occasionally saying rather daft and random things, bit like my irrational rationale, I guess there is a bit of this in all of us.
Nothing to feel sorry about, Michael.
DeleteWe know about TG. In truth I do not mind him, that much. Could be he just wants to be heard. However, it frustrates me when I perceive that others are bashing their heads against a brick wall in a fruitless endeavour to talk sense to him. On the other hand if they know what they are dealing and do not mind then they are probably doing good. There but for the grace of God and all that.
There but indeed, mind you I think there is a whole and largely unexplored area of the way people behave strangely on social media. I think there are aspects similar to gambling addiction, something I haven’t ever suffered from so am not in the best position to judge. Easily – say now – responding to you can, who after all is just an anon, can overshadow the normal interaction going on, here – now - with my family.
DeleteThere is something strange about the need to communicate via a keyboard, or perhaps the need to say something in public, perhaps a perception of added gravitas or something.
Have no fear 5:44, i noted that 8:57 had an issue with grasp of the situation early on. Just good to get information out there, so people aren't scared silly over a particularly well managed risk from our industrial past.
DeleteMichael, is an irrational rationale a rational conceptual position, or does it's very irrationality lead it to become simply a musing..
Anon you appear to be more semantic than I expected. An irrational rationale doesn’t really need to be either I suppose, crime for instance could be seen as one.
DeleteI like to make the unexpected a reality, thus making the unexpected expected.
DeleteIf one used the rationale that a perfect crime carries no penalty, would it therefore make it a logical rational that commiting that crime was a rational endevour..
(I don't seek to be argumentative, merely amusing, the construct of the English language has always amused and facinated me)
It will seem strange to take a tour round them wothout having the thought of being caught in the back of my mind!
ReplyDeleteI went on the 1st tour at 10am on Saturday and was very impressed - especially given it was only £5. My 8 year old enjoyed it too.
ReplyDeleteAs for the hard hats, I can confirm that they are indeed necessary, especially for anybody over about 5'10" !!
No, and there are many other things for you to worry yourself about too. The floor is a bit uneven, there are no roof supports, the only back-up lighting is a torch and there is nowhere to take refuge if there is a sudden flood. Perhaps you should stay at home.
DeleteFalling off your bike in the tunnels?
DeletePeter watching your tentative moves towards purchasing a hat must be an education. I never fail to be amused by the risks others see in life, however I can offer you some advice here as I am a parent and you are not. If the worse should happen go to Tesco or Sainsbury and buy one of their large value bottles of hair conditioner and a lice comb. Lots of conditioner and the comb every few days and they go, slip off the slippery hair, watch out for the various poisonous lotions from the chemist, not only do they not work very well but they are expensive and can make your head sore.
ReplyDeletePlanes are not still dumped at manston are they? Why haven't they been removed to a proper recyling site?
ReplyDeleteAnon 1:14 pm, Maybe it's because of that asbestos that's out to get you?
Delete