With the recent vandalism of the entire institution and the beginning of the demolition process of some of the older collapsing buildings, cops have been at a sharp rise. From cruisers being parked right outside the gates to motorcycle and cruiser patrols, I'd keep a look out. At 5/11 around 9pm we were spotted by a cruiser and had to run into the woods and make it to the tunnels. If you are considering about going I would advise over the weekends from sun rise to sun fall.
Warning 2:
Be aware of the rise in coyotes and Wolves in the area at night, explore with a friend and know your surroundings well. I recommend staying as a pack and slowly walking towards a building until they have left the area for at least 10 minutes.
Warning 3:
Restaurant equipment is being moved out of the primary kitchen and power is currently on, Patrols do occasionally enter the building to make sure the equipment is safe.
Stay safe out there
Urban (Bobcat) Triglav IG: UrbanTriglav When there is a tunnel is a way
This is nothing new. Two years ago we were greeted at the gate by the Waltham PD, who told us to leave immediately. This was at around 7am. We left and came in through the back, spending the entire day there, entering multiple buildings. By around 2pm, we had worked our way close to the front gate, and looked out the window of one of the oldest buildings on the property to see the police cruiser parked exactly where he had been 7 hours earlier. We also watched him start his car and do a patrol of the property. How we avoided him all day Ill never know. Fernald is a great place, but is also one of the most closely watched places Ive ever been to
Like plenty of places, law enforcement comes and goes. Even back when it was still a functioning facility you'd have to run around patrol cars of various agencies. The main road leading from the back used to almost always have a sleeping officer in his vehicle for a long time.
I once spent six hours in there carefully avoiding an area that most definitely had a cop car parked near it. My second time there, about two months later, I was caught and let off with a 10 minute-long warning. The only thing that made a difference for me was the route that I took through the place, but they really do watch every corner of that place like hawks. The officer who saw me said that at least one person is arrested there every day.
What a coincidence that the day I hit up a buddy about visiting the grounds of the old Met, I see this thread. Is it worth it and possible to get into the grounds still? Gotta see what remains of the greats before they're all gone....and that includes Fernald, lol
Justice works on the principle of equal torment for all. Under no circumstances may justice find a mistake excuseable.
such a simple place to go. go early and park by the active bldg. then start walking. stay outta sight til it gets dark then go back to your car and leave. we did. there's a lot of ground to cover there. haven't been in 7-8 yrs. i'd assume not much has changed.
I always hear about how the security is crazy, but have only seen cop cars at the entrances. Never inside. I've only ever witnessed a few construction trucks driving by, but that was on the main road. There are so many buildings close together. It's so easy to look out to see if the coast is clear before going to the next. The trick is to not linger outside the buildings.
I went there twice a few weeks ago. I was lucky this first time, but not so much the 2nd. I was let off with a warning by the WPD, but I am happy I was able to get a few pics of the place before its gone. I know I was a bit late to the game on this one, but still found some disturbing patient documents about a patient trying to stack a staff member, and needing to be restrained. This place has a sad history, and just being there gave me the chills. If you haven't been, the place won't be accessible for much longer, and you need to enter and exit through the woods, the WDP patrols the entrance on Waverly oaks road and tupelo road 24/7. The police gave me a lecture about asbestos and the instability of the buildings. A mask is a necessity here, and some rugged clothing and footwear. Luckily, I still managed to snag a few good photos.
I heard that recently construction workers found some really nasty PFC chemicals in the soil around some of the older buildings here when they were digging/doing abatement. The EPA needs to be called in to take care of it, so try not to kick up dirt/whatever else because that shit will do some damage to you. Just a heads up to some of you who still go here.
I've been here several times over the last few months, so the stuff about PFC's is pretty spooky. Still a few buildings I need to check out, though I'm worried about running into the one the cops are using - does anyone actually know which one that is? I know it must be one of the ones near the center.
Also, fwiw I've also never seen a single policeman there. That said, I've always been pretty careful to not linger outside and to dart between the buildings. No way they'll go looking for you in those death traps. I've also always gone on weekends - maybe they have weird patrolling schedules?