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Description
These rows of World War II-era bunkers were the scene of some of the infamous Mothman sightings. These TNT bunkers also known as the TNT Storage bunkers for the West Virginia Ordnance Works, a military facility that manufactured and stored trinitrotoluene (TNT) during World War II.
At the height of its production, the facility outside Point Pleasant, West Virginia, produced 500,000 pounds of TNT each day. The site was closed in 1945, and what wasn’t eventual made into a regional airport became recreational space. Much of the land, contaminated by TNT and its chemical precursor DNT, is a Superfund site that’s been on the National Priorities List since 1983. Surprisingly, remediation doesn’t involve much removal of hazardous material. Monitoring and containment is the strategy.
This curious cryptid was first seen at the gate of the abandoned munitions storage facility. Reported sightings in the area continued until the collapse of the Silver Bridge in December of 1967.
The Mothman and the circumstances around its mysterious appearance in Point Pleasant would later be chronicled in John Keel’s 1976 book The Mothman Prophecies and its 2002 movie adaptation.
There are no signs or other markers for this site, and you have to hike to get to the bunkers. Traveling north on Route 62, turn right (east) onto Rt 11/Potters Creek Road. Where the pavement ends, bear right onto the long, straight road, due south. Take a hard right onto Park Forest 801 and travel about 3/4 of a mile and find one of the trails to the right and hike to the north. The bunkers will be about a 1/2 mile in, on both your right and left. Some of this is private property, so be respectful and prudent.
ps – After watching this episode of The Mothman Curse on Paranormal Witness, I’d think twice about visiting these bunkers 🙂 –
Text and images sourced from https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/tnt-area and https://www.wired.com/2014/03/joshua-dudley-greer-tnt-storage/