In a concrete bunker in western Sweden, almost 40 people take turns to turn a green crank to secure their oxygen supply in a simulation of a night spent in an air raid shelter.

Sweden has been stepping up battle readiness after Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine and this week the municipality of Grums organised the country’s first overnight air-raid shelter exercise.

Thirty-seven Swedes – including a firefighter, a pensioner and a secretary – showed up outside the Grums nursing home carrying sleeping bags on Thursday evening.

Some were anxious before entering the underground shelter.

“Will the armoured door be completely closed?”, “How will the oxygen level be measured?” were some of the questions they asked, and project manager Therese Rosenblad patiently replied their queries.

The aim of the exercise is to observe the participants’ behaviour underground and draw lessons to make a stay in the enclosed shelter “more comfortable,” should the need arise.

“We want to know how people react if you keep 40 people here, what is the temperature like, what is the CO2 level,” Rosenblad told AFP.

She said the war in Ukraine “has absolutely made Sweden more aware of what could happen,” and “really increased our willingness to get prepared.”

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