REMAINS OF NAVY COMMUNICATION BUNKER - 5 KM FROM WALVIS BAY, NAMIBIA

The Navy bunker, at a stage one of the most secret units in the country. It was built to withstand a direct hit from an aircraft, it is also a few floors deep. Photo was taken last week, very few tracks are visible. Did not get any closer to the entrance, as I saw a person at the gate.

One night we went to the bunker next to the Rooikop Walvis road. It was a heap of sand. The guards sleeping area was at the main gate. We had to walk along a long tunnel into the bunker, and rang the bells for the guard to open the door. He had a little armoured glass window. It was quite funny because you could hear someone walking in the tunnel from a long way off. Next to the door there was a shower for nuclear and chemical warfare, where you could shower if you were contaminated. The door was very thick, and could only be opened elctrically. How far down the bunker went, I don't know. We were only allowed in the guard area. The rumour was an exaggerated 7 stories, but I don't believe that. The guard duty was only during the night. There were people working there during daytime.

Next to the Northern gate was the signallers encampment. It was off limits. I went there once with van Dyck. They had a steel roof with a few containers underneath, and a few very long antennas. They did eat out of our kitchen, but we didn't know how many were there. Once there was a black guy in the coffeebar, he was an Ovambo, and could speak quite a lot of languges. Quite a few others were Portuguese speakers.

It was about that time we started working on the 61 Mech memorial next to the entrance road. The granite we got from a quarry, South of the Walvis road. Lt Swanepeol was in charge. Van Staden, Britz, me, two sappers, and a medic. The base was the Castle, with granite walls build up to about knee height. The granite obelisk was glued to the middle. I'm sad to say it wasn't finished when we left. The sappers dug two holes for palm trees in front. They only got to about knee depth when they hit hard surface. The rest of the holes were dug by the builder's machine.

From FB groups:

Can someone tell me something about the navy communication bunker near Narraville outside Walvis bay. The history about the place.

Frikkie Coetzee
My son and I were in it. Everything totaled and broke down all they could. The world is black smoked from the things they burned for light. The 2 vault doors were still there and the elevator's platform. The first time the standby's block was still there but the last time it was also worn out. Probably smashed into pieces. The entrances are so tpe blown you have to crawl in.

John Alberts
As an apprentice at the then Post and Telecommunication, later Telkom in SA, we did all the wiring and cables. The place was still under construction. I guess the year was 1971. I was 16 years old.

Tina Rowan
I was there in 1976 for an interview at the Head there. When I had to go down with such style of stairs with my mini dress and the soldiers were standing waiting at each staircase (looked almost like a war ship's stairs - the whole setup felt like you were inside a ship) I decided just there and then I'm not going to work there. I got the job and then declined. I think few Walvis Bayers knew about this those years. From the road it looked like a sand dune.

Bobby Valerio Marilli
I was there during 1978 and 1979. It was the Naval comms centre and HQ it was 3 stories underground and very protected. It had 2 very long passages then a large hydraulic operated steel door when closed you were in a cubicle for security checks and when cleared the other large door opens to let you in. It was well equipped. Must admit was scary the first time I entered the Bunker but sleped there many times when I was duty driver. Sad to see the current state.

Derrick Absolon
I worked as a fleet member in the bunker in the 80's. It was used as a communication center. The 3 story underground. I was the electronic warfare operator and focused on communication intelligence.

Fanie Du Preez
Before Walvis Bay was handed over to Namibia in 1994, all cables were cut off, the confidential equipment removed and the place was left unusable. The name was Advocate.

Jan Rigaard
The contractor that built was Turner Morris if I remember correctly.

Lynette MulderAuthor
How many floors is it down?

Derrick Absolon
Lynette Mulder 3 floors. I used to work there.

Ingo Irle
Silvermine was even bigger... I saw photos of Silvermyn in an Eastern German book and 6 + months later the Swiss Admiral and his wife for treason was akeer.. The bunker was a nuclear bomb for sure. We maintained the telex machines there. The special room in the center was operated by a man and woman, who lived at 17th Road and 16th Street, near the circle. There was a 9600 modem connected to the direct telephone radio to Pretoria. They had the dozens of modems at the command office, linked to Telecom to monitor the Swapo's. The guy was driving a maroon double cab. He didn't know, that he was constantly being watched, because I stayed on the slopes across from him. He was usually busy in the small room at his house for 5 hours. Later there were dozens of Telefunken receivers, controlled by 513 troop near Rooikop, to monitor all transmissions.

There were 300 PCM telephone channels between the Bunker, Rooikop and Walvisbaai which was 3 times more than between Walvis and Windhoek. It led to that, the false raid, of Swapo, was quickly evaded. The intelligence container stood in Windhoek for another 4 years, before it was dismantled at Navy HQ, so that if something goes wrong, abroad can act quickly.

Marina van der Merwe, 2022
The Bunker \ Advocate was used by the military for monitoring ships (as I understood).
This WAS a 2 story building. It was destroyed several years ago by children who climbed to the top. All I can say there's nothing about the place left, was in there itself. It will cost millions to fix this.

Marina van der Merwe
The place was handed over to the NAM Army, but army gave it back to Ministry of Works, so it is still state property. And of course there is no money to fix it. Recently, and I still believe many thefts have taken place.

25 April 2024

Derrick Absolon
I worked in that bunker in the 80's naval communications. 3 stories down. Entrance through mantrap doors. Bombproof double walls. You can see the airducts on top. Last I saw it in 2017, the entrances were closed with sand.

20 March 2020

Johan Schutte
About 5 km outside Walvis on the Rooikop road on the left side of the road about 2.. 3 km in you will see a dune with greenery on it.. A couple of radio masts... under that dune the saw built their underground command headquarters.. 2 storey.. Princes of the Learning.. Air Force and Navy had offices there.. Operational carded cards on the table.. own oxygen cylinder then four 11 kw power supply + emergency generator... 2 days ago... 1st one for heavy vehicles where a hys bak is and the 2nd for strictly keurde staff.. The hydraulic door at the staff entrance is 40 cm thick and you can only close the door after showing your ID card against a small bullet proof window... the first departure left is a decontamination shower.. emergency exits everywhere.. I visited the place years after 1990 to try and convince the government to utilize the valuable infrastructure. Without any success.. There were also 40 to 80 m how radiomasts that could be turned from a radio room to engage in electronic warfare.. the entrance to the facility was used to house military prisoners.. thick prison doors.. with a small tralievensterkie doer above.. hundreds of names with dates were scratched out on the walls.. the prison probably should have killed from heat in that room.. I was that time werksaam at the Namibian Communication Commission and we have the ingangsnkantore and a piece of ground there utilized to BHF.. UHF and HF monitoring facility there to set.. I wonder many times Can the innovative business community of Walvis not negotiate with the Ministry of Works and Transport to utilize this facility for anything... Two floors underground with hordes offices and rooms.

Jan Rigaard
The purpose was to monitor the South Atlantic's shipping transportation. The other points than at Silvermine and near Durban. Upgraded later . Was under the command of the fleet.

Ingo Irle
In the "Lawyer Bunker" just outside Walvis and on Rooikop, they were being carefully watched. Silver Mine in Cape Town has monitored all of South Africa, up to the Equator. A photo of inside Silver Mine was found in an East German book. Not long later, an Admiral and his wife were arrested, due to espionage.

21 October 2014

Former Navy bunker unsuitable for storage of dangerous goods

Following the application a few months ago by the company Native Storage Facility CC for a site where dangerous goods can be stored, the Municipality subsequently convened a meeting attended by all the relevant stakeholders in this matter.

The purpose of the meeting was to find common ground regarding the site of the proposed development, which has become a matter of concern for various interest groups.

At this meeting, on 07 August 2014, consensus was reached on the fact that Walvis Bay is in need of a facility to provide temporary safe storage for dangerous goods and hazardous materials that find their way into or out of town. Furthermore, the former communication bunker east of Narraville was found to be an unsuitable site and should therefore not be considered by the proponent. The Environmental Impact Assessment, currently being conducted in respect of such a facility, should detail a number of possible sites, was also decided and also that all parties involved would have an equal opportunity to comment on the EIA after due process has been followed.

Subsequent to the above meeting, Native Storage submitted a new application to lease 15 to 20 hectares of un-serviced land on Farm 43, which is about 20 km south-east of Walvis Bay, for the development of a storage facility for dangerous goods.

The applicant was granted in-principle approval by Council on 30 September 2014, under the conditions that concise project proposal, indicating the time line of the planning/activities and approvals from relevant authorities, should be submitted within six months and that an EIA should be conducted and an Environmental Clearance Certificate should be obtained from the Ministry of Environment and Tourism. Once these conditions have been satisfied, a further comprehensive report with recommendations will be submitted to Council for final consideration.
Walvis Bay mayor,Uillika Nambahu, chaired the meeting which was attended by municipal representatives, the Office of the Governor, Concerned Group of Walvis Bay, Namport, Namibia Defence Force, Nampol, Native Storage (The Proponent of the Project) and Enviro Solutions.

Mr. Stan Baumann, the chairperson of the Walvis Bay Concerned Group, expressed the Group’s satisfaction regarding the Municipality’s decision not to use the old Navy bunker as a storage facility for dangerous goods. The WBCG fought vigorously over the last few months against the proposed dumping of supposed toxic and radioactive waste at the said bunker.

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