Urban Exploration 1 by praximity, artmouse, Mary H
April 12th, 2009 10:30 PM / Location: 37.789794,-122.2818In Alameda, CA there exists an abandoned hospital back from when Alameda Point was Alameda Naval Air Station.
Opened in 1930 originally as an Army Air Corps base and given to the Navy in 1936, and remained in operation until 1997. It has been the longtime home of the USS Hornet aircraft carrier (now a 'museum ship') and has since been a prime filming location for movies such as The Matrix trilogy and the Discovery Channel hit Mythbusters. The station has also been a Superfund site since 1999.
obviously, a great area of interest to Alameda thrill seekers of all ages.
The base itself is full of abandoned barracks and warehouses and curiosities that are all rather easy to access,
but the real creepy prize of the area is the hospital - sometimes referred to as the "Alameda Asylum."
Most people find it easier to visit in the cover of darkness - but because it was Saturday we thought we'd have an OK chance in the daytime.
Praximity:
our first attempt on the hospital was a non-starter. we were stopped by a woman in a short car (presumably working at the nearby docks) who spat out warning buzzwords at us: "trespassing", "arrested", "contamination". the verbal equivalent of black and yellow stripes. she saw us out.
so we headed to the barracks instead.
"UGH. UNCOOL."
On the way to the barracks we encountered some of the base's more fuzzy inhabitants: the colony of abandoned bunny rabbits!
=:3
the barracks themselves now exist in a rather sad state - most of the windows broken, all the nooks and crannies overtaken by weeds.
Mary: "I got the shot."
We hop some fences & go in search of some possible easy entrance points.
Entering Forbidden Territory:
it is, at times, a place of great silence.
inside the burned out room:
a hallway, filled with fluff.
even though some rooms remain in fair condition, most of the furniture is infested with harmful mold. :(
Outside again:
hooray for air free of {possibly} toxic mold!
Now for the execution of our original objective!
THE ABANDONED HOSPITAL.
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update: April 1st, 2009. Unfortunately, this was not an April fool's joke.
SFGate: Fire at Abandoned Alameda Hospital
I am emotionally crushed by this news.
this marks the death of what i'd hoped this task to be. I don't mean to be melodramatic or inconsiderate, but to me, a lifelong resident of Alameda, this is feels like how I felt after 9/11.
This place was the equivalent of a wildlife refuge for local graffiti art, a ghostly adventure park for urban explorers, and honestly one of the last interesting places in this city to trespass. FML.
RIP.
One week after the fire we paid our respects, detailed in the first few photos below:
23 vote(s)
Hortvald Inki
5
Poisøn Lake
4
Rin Brooker
5
Lincøln
4
Tøm
5
teucer
5
Theo Playfoot
5
Ben Yamiin
5
GYØ Ben
5
done
3
Mr Everyday
3
Loki
5
Sean Mahan
5
Not Here No More
5
Waldo Cheerio
5
THE NOOB
5
ananas
5
Charlie Fish
4
Spidere
4
Juxtapolemic
4
Edwin Farnham Butler III
5
gh◌st ᵰⱥ₥ing
5
Idøntity matrix
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(none yet)9 comment(s)
aw, i mourn the graffitti art. it reminds me of the abandoned presidio hospital in sf, all that art and creepy morgue equipment destroyed to build new condos.
The nature of the building is really all too debatable. It's definitely not an insane asylum and the whole question of it being a hospital is possibly under debate. It's located in the Naval Supply Center area and the local papers call it a supply direction center. But even still thinking the building was once a looney bin, still doesn't deter from the former mystique.
Btw, damn stupid hooligans ruining the fun for everyone in April.
indeed a very tragic day in Alameda history.
i suspect you enjoyed the ghost images... but the scrutinizing spirit in me prompted me to upload the photos.
mended!
secret bunny rabbits=love.