Population and procedures
Shelter visits Find useful information, procedures and answers to questions from the population.Obligation to build and replacement contributions
When building residential houses, owners must create shelters, equip them and then ensure their maintenance. In areas where the number of protected places is insufficient, municipalities must also create, equip and maintain shelters (public shelters). If, for technical reasons, it is not possible to build a shelter or if the need for protected places is already covered in the assessment area, the owner of the building is obliged to pay a replacement contribution instead. The replacement contribution must be paid before construction begins.
Skills and cost distribution
The Confederation issues regulations aimed at guaranteeing the effectiveness of the entire system of protective works. The cantons implement these regulations with the help of the Confederation. Owners bear the costs of building, equipping and maintaining private shelters. Municipalities cover the costs of creating, equipping and maintaining their own shelters.
Shelter equipment
Owners must equip their shelters with the equipment necessary for a prolonged stay. Equipment for a (new) shelter usually includes beds and toilets (usually dry toilets).
Shelter for 5 to 50 protected places
There are several types of shelters. The shelters offering a maximum of 50 protected places consist of a compartment and an entrance with an armored door. They are supplemented by an evacuation route or an emergency exit which also serves as an air intake for the ventilation device. The air exhaust and the toilet room (usually a dry toilet) are placed near the entrance.
Shelter for more than 50 protected places
The largest shelters consist of two or more compartments, each offering a maximum of 50 protected places and a common entrance. The compartments are connected to each other by normal doors. The entrance and the airlock are closed by two armored doors. Shelters with a maximum of 100 protected places have an evacuation route and an emergency exit. Shelters with more than 100 protected places (max. 200) include two evacuation routes and two emergency exits. The emergency exits also serve as air intakes for the ventilation devices (one device in each compartment). Toilets (generally dry toilets) are placed, in shelters with a maximum of 100 places, next to the airlock and near the air outlets; in shelters with more than 100 places, they are placed in a separate room.
Special shelters
In addition to the above-mentioned shelters, there are special shelters such as shelters in garages, on open ground as well as shelters in hospitals and homes for the elderly. They are designed as simply as possible with regard to their layout and technical installations, taking into account, however, the particular conditions inherent to their use in peacetime.
Decommissioning shelters
The cantons may decommission shelters which no longer meet the protection requirements. Shelters meeting the protection requirements may be decommissioned (in accordance with the regulations of the Federal Office for Civil Protection) to the extent that they would disproportionately hinder or prevent a conversion in existing buildings or are located in a highly endangered region. Decommissioning is requested by the owner from the municipality, which will transmit it to the canton.
Periodic shelter inspection (CPA)
Initially created to protect the population in the event of armed conflict, civil protection shelters can be used in the event of a disaster or emergency situation. Even today there remains the obligation to have a protected place, whether it is a public shelter built by the municipality or a private shelter under a villa.
Periodic inspection of shelters makes it possible to check whether the shelters are still up to standard to protect the population in the event of an emergency. The controls are governed by a federal directive which depends on different laws
The owner of the shelter has various maintenance obligations to maintain the degree of protection of the shelter as well as its full value. To help control and maintain the shelter, the Confederation has published an aide memoire which you will find below.
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