Huge ghost town where 12,000 people lived and now abandoned looks like 'scene from Walking Dead' – The Mirror US
Encased in nature's grasp for over ten years, a ghost town once bustling with life – replete with expansive four-bedroom houses, an apartment complex akin to barracks, sporting amenities, and even its own petrol station – is slowly succumbing to the wild.
Constructed by the British government at the peak of the Cold War, JHQ Rheindahlen became home to as many as 12,000 British troops and their kin from 1952 until its desertion in 2013. Surprisingly, this relic lies not within the United Kingdom but in Germany.
"This place is so big it is pretty much its own city," remarked Colin Hodson, the man behind the camera for his Bearded Explorer YouTube channel, in awe of the desolate landscape. "I cannot believe this whole estate is completely abandoned."
He likened the eerie sensation of strolling through the vast, now animal-inhabited remains of the town to standing in the midst of an apocalypse devoid of human existence.
Veiled beneath an encroaching forest canopy spanning 376 hectares, the site renders the structures nearly invisible during the leafier seasons. Colin's visit came when the trees were still stark, offering a glimpse into what this military settlement might have felt like in its heyday.
The buildings, potentially worth millions in today's market, make the total valuation of this settlement immeasurable. While signs of vandalism and graffiti are present, much of the establishment stands unspoiled.
Colin told the Express that despite the mild weather, there was an inexplicable chill pervading many of the buildings' interiors.
"This is actually incredible," Colin exclaimed. "This is probably the closest I've ever felt to be like walking around in The Walking Dead. This is exactly what it would look like if the world ended everyone disappeared nature would just literally take over everything."
The British Army officially relinquished control of the town to German authorities in December 2013, with initial redevelopment plans to turn it into a housing area for asylum seekers. However, more than a decade later, there's been no advancement.
Proposals for transforming the site into a leisure park by Arab investors were brought forward in 2015, yet those plans seem to have fizzled out too.
Parts of the facility are set to become a training ground for the North Rhein Westfalia police force, intending to provide officers with realistic training scenarios, including hostage rescue operations.
The abandoned town looks much like any other modern British or German towns, complete with houses and garages, some still locked. In certain instances, trees have sprouted in front of garage doors rendering them impossible to open: "Some of these haven't been opened in a very very long time," remarked Colin.
In its prime, the location had housed a NAAFI superstore, a BP gas station, two post offices, a dress shop, and even five British primary schools.
Colin plans on returning next month for another exploration of the vast grounds, but as for future prospects for the ghostly town, it remains shrouded in uncertainty.
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