As wild as it sounds, the world hosts a handful of secretive societies that have taken subterranean living to a whole new level. In this guide we explore the 10 communities people call home beneath the surface, from cramped basements in bustling metropolises to legally sanctioned underground towns.
10 Communities People: Why They Live Below Ground
10 The Rat Tribe Of China
More than one million Chinese residents—roughly five percent of Beijing’s population—are packed into windowless basements and repurposed air‑raid shelters. These denizens, known locally as the rat tribe (shuzu), are ambitious youngsters who have abandoned their rural homes to chase work in the capital.
The subterranean chambers were originally dug during the 1969 Sino‑Soviet border conflict on Chairman Mao’s orders. After his death, the new administration opened the shelters to commercial use, and people began renting the cramped spaces.
For many of these youths, the underground option is a financial lifeline: a shelter below ground costs about half of what an above‑ground flat would demand, making it an affordable alternative for those who cannot secure a conventional apartment.
The rat tribe endures significant stigma. Residents often hide their living situation from family, and landlords impose odd restrictions—such as banning sunbathing on balconies or prohibiting the airing of bedding outdoors.
Even though authorities have officially prohibited the rental of these air‑raid shelters, enforcement is lax and many continue to operate, effectively ignoring the ban.
9 The Endangered Homeless People Who Live In Bogota’s Sewers
In Colombia, homeless individuals have taken refuge in Bogota’s foul‑smelling sewers after a wave of targeted killings forced them off the streets. Since the 1990s, affluent businessmen—viewing the homeless as a nuisance—have hired death squads composed of ex‑soldiers and police officers to eradicate them.
These squads, sometimes augmented by active police officers, have turned the sewers into killing fields. Victims are often burned alive when perpetrators pour gasoline into the tunnels and set it alight, a horror that claimed 22 children in a single incident.
The sewers offer no safety; they are riddled with filth, waste, and rats, and the violence continues unabated. The grim statistics speak for themselves: between 1988 and 1993, roughly 2,000 homeless people were murdered, with an additional 215 killed in the first half of 1994 alone.
Today, estimates suggest that about 345 people fall victim to these murderous tactics each year, underscoring the ongoing peril faced by Bogota’s underground homeless community.
8 The Orphans Of Bucharest
The labyrinthine sewers beneath Bucharest shelter hundreds of individuals, most of whom are orphaned children who fled underground after the 1989 regime change shuttered their state‑run orphanages.
Life in the tunnels is a stark tableau of squalor: residents sleep on rotting garments, scavenge for meager food, and endure a constant presence of garbage and disease. Drug abuse is rampant, mirroring the desperation that permeates the underground community.
Control of the sewers rests with a man known as Bruce Lee, a rugged figure who roams the tunnels accompanied by a pack of dogs. For over two decades, Lee has acted as the de‑facto ruler, deciding who may enter and who must be turned away.
Children form a substantial portion of the underground population. Many were born in the sewers and have never known any other home. Although Lee claims to be constructing a better dwelling above ground for all, skeptics argue that his promises have long remained unfulfilled.
Law‑enforcement attempts to evict the tunnel dwellers have repeatedly failed. Police seal off entrances, yet the residents consistently find new ways to slip back underground, maintaining their hidden society.
7 The Homeless People Who Live Under Manhattan
New York’s homeless crisis extends beneath the city’s surface, where a 4‑kilometer (2.5‑mile) Amtrak tunnel runs beneath Riverside Park. The tunnel was first abandoned in 1980, prompting a wave of squatters. When Amtrak reclaimed the tunnel in 1991, many were displaced, only to return later to carve out tiny niches within the darkness.
Photographer and filmmaker Andrea Star Reese has chronicled the lives of these subterranean residents, publishing a photo‑book that captures their stark reality. According to Reese, many choose the tunnels over official shelters because the latter are often unsanitary and unwelcoming.
Substance abuse is a pervasive issue among tunnel dwellers. Some individuals who have attempted detoxification were turned away for not meeting the severity thresholds required for treatment. Periodic police raids further destabilize the community, forcing residents to flee or hide.
6 The Tunnel People Of Las Vegas
Estimates suggest that between 200 and 300 people have made the storm‑drain tunnels beneath Las Vegas their home. The tunnels, constructed in the 1990s, became a refuge for the homeless, a fact that only entered public awareness in 2002 after a high‑profile criminal fled there.
Documentarian Matthew O’Brien reports that many tunnel residents suffer from mental illness, chronic disease, or other misfortunes that push them underground. The tunnels offer a degree of autonomy unavailable in conventional shelters.
Choosing the storm‑drain system over city shelters stems from several factors: pets and partners are often barred from official shelters, some individuals are too intoxicated to qualify, and others work late‑night shifts that make conventional housing impractical.
Life below ground is not without hazards. Residents frequently fall into drug use and gambling as coping mechanisms. Moreover, heavy rains can cause sudden flooding, compelling tunnel dwellers to meticulously arrange their living spaces to avoid being swept away.
5 The Homeless Orphans Who Live In Moscow’s Sewers
In 2002, estimates placed roughly 50,000 homeless children on the streets of Moscow, many of whom resorted to the city’s sprawling sewer system during the brutal Russian winter. These youths, many of whom escaped from dire state‑run orphanages, survive through begging, petty theft, and, in some cases, prostitution.
While the children primarily navigate the streets, they retreat underground when temperatures plunge below zero, seeking shelter from the icy chill. Unfortunately, the harsh climate still claims lives, with many freezing to death within the sewers.
The situation has deteriorated over time. Some non‑governmental organizations estimate that over 100,000 individuals now live on Moscow’s streets, a figure starkly contrasted by government claims that the number hovers around 10,000.
4 Coober Pedy
Coober Pedy proudly claims the title of the world’s only official underground town. Nestled in the Australian outback, the settlement grew around opal mining and has embraced subterranean living as a practical response to the region’s scorching temperatures, which can soar to 52 °C (125 °F).
The relentless heat drove residents to carve their homes, businesses, and even communal spaces beneath the desert surface. Today, the town boasts a network of more than 1,500 dwellings, each sunk 2.4–6.7 metres (8–22 ft) underground, offering comfortable, climate‑controlled living spaces.
These underground homes mirror conventional houses in amenities, with the exception that kitchens and bathrooms sit just above ground, allowing for proper sewage disposal. Despite the extra effort, construction costs for an underground residence align closely with those of a surface home.
Homeowners can easily expand their subterranean abodes by simply drilling deeper—sometimes striking opal in the process. One motel famously uncovered a $360,000 opal vein while excavating additional rooms.
3 The Underground Migrant Town In Moscow
In 2011, Moscow police uncovered a hidden underground settlement housing 110 illegal migrants. Originally fashioned as a bomb shelter beneath a factory that produced blades, needles, and safety pins, the space became a clandestine dwelling for workers seeking cheap accommodation.
This discovery was part of a broader crackdown that also revealed secret underground hideouts, including a sausage‑making facility and a concealed refuge beneath a railway station.
2 Lots Of Syrians Are Living Underground To Escape Air Strikes
The protracted Syrian civil war has forced countless civilians to seek shelter beneath the earth as bombings reduce entire neighborhoods to rubble in moments. Many families retreat to basements, while others dig makeshift bunkers or bomb shelters beneath their homes.
In February 2018, residents of Eastern Ghouta fled underground as the Syrian military mounted a massive offensive. The cramped shelters often house up to 80 people within a 150‑square‑meter (1,614 ft²) space, leaving no room even to lie down.
These subterranean enclaves suffer from poor ventilation, rampant mold, and a complete lack of electricity, water, or sanitation. Some inhabitants liken their underground quarters to graves, highlighting the dire conditions they endure.
1 A Reclusive Islamic Sect Was Caught Living Under Russia
In August 2012, Russian authorities investigating the assassination of a prominent Islamic cleric in Kazan stumbled upon a secretive sect living beneath the city. The group, known as the muammin (meaning “believers”), comprised about 70 individuals, including 27 children who had never seen sunlight.
Members occupied cramped, cell‑like apartments devoid of heat or natural light, spending their days confined underground. Only a handful of adults were permitted to exit the hidden complex to trade at local markets.
The sect’s charismatic leader, 83‑year‑old Faizrakhman Satarov, proclaimed himself a prophet and declared his three‑story dwelling independent of Russian jurisdiction. Despite the bizarre claim, the underground residence remained a tightly sealed enclave.