Short answer. A June 2024 count found about 3.4 million places in Danish building shelters (sikringsrum) and just over 3.6 million places across all shelter types 12. Most shelters are used for other purposes in peacetime and are not ready for immediate use 1. There is no public national map: to find your nearest shelter, ask your municipality or the local fire and rescue service 23.
What types of shelter exist in Denmark?
The Agency for Societal Security distinguishes three kinds of protected space 123:
- Sikringsrum: reinforced rooms in buildings, for the people who live, work or have business there.
- Offentlige beskyttelsesrum: public shelters, for example for people on the road or residents of buildings without a shelter. They include concrete trench shelters (betondækningsgrave, often called "bunkere").
- Supplerende rum til beskyttelse: supplementary spaces such as underground car parks and pedestrian tunnels. They do not meet shelter construction requirements but give some protection.
How many shelter places are there?
| Count | Figure | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Places in sikringsrum | about 3.4 million | 12 |
| Places across all shelter types | just over 3.6 million | 12 |
The count was made in 2024 by the Danish Emergency Management Agency with the Danish Property Assessment Agency 12.
Can I use a shelter right away?
Not necessarily. The Agency states that the rooms are built robustly enough for protection, "men de er ikke klargjorte og kan derfor ikke umiddelbart tages i brug i tilfælde af uvarslede hændelser" (but they are not prepared and therefore cannot be used immediately in an unannounced event) 1. If the security situation requires it, the Minister for Societal Security and Emergency Preparedness can ask municipalities to prepare them within a set notice period, for example 3 months 12.
In a sudden event, the immediate instruction remains the one given with the sirens: go indoors and look for information from DR or TV 2 (see the alerts page). The guide /guides/shelter-or-evacuate explains the general logic of staying put.
How do I find my nearest shelter?
There is no public national map 2. Contact the municipality or the municipal fire and rescue service that manages shelters in your area; samsik.dk lists which authority is responsible for each municipality 2. If your building has a sikringsrum, the building owner is responsible for it 23.
Who is responsible for shelters?
Municipalities build, maintain, run and prepare public shelters; since a 2016 law change, many have delegated this to joint municipal fire and rescue services 2. Building owners are responsible for sikringsrum 23. The rules for owners are on the build a shelter page.
Are the shelters being inspected?
Yes, in phases 5:
- Phase 1 (concrete trench shelters) is finished: about half (49%) of those located met the basic requirements and had their main fixed installations 5.
- Phase 2 (sikringsrum) has started with a pilot. The broader inspection is expected to begin before the end of 2026, first in state and publicly owned buildings, then in private ones, and is carried out by building owners 5.
Since 1 February 2026, municipalities must report their total number of shelter places every four years, the first time by 1 January 2030 45.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a map of shelters in Denmark?
No public national map exists. Ask your municipality or local fire and rescue service 2.
Are underground car parks shelters?
They can be supplementary spaces that give some protection, but they do not meet shelter construction requirements 12.
How quickly could shelters be made ready?
Within a notice period set by the minister, for example 3 months 12.
Does my apartment building have a shelter?
Ask the building owner, who is responsible for any sikringsrum, or your municipality 23.
Sources
- Styrelsen for Samfundssikkerhed — Beskyttelsesrum — https://samsik.dk/beskyttelsesrum/ (accessed 2026-10-20)
- Styrelsen for Samfundssikkerhed — FAQ – Beskyttelsesrum — https://samsik.dk/beskyttelsesrum/faq-beskyttelsesrum/ (accessed 2026-10-20)
- borger.dk (written by Styrelsen for Samfundssikkerhed) — Beskyttelsesrum og sikringsrum — https://www.borger.dk/politi-retsvaesen-forsvar/Forsvar-og-beredskab/beskyttelsesrum-og-sikringsrum (accessed 2026-10-20)
- Retsinformation — Lov om ændring af lov om beskyttelsesrum og CER-loven, lov nr. 135 af 27/01/2026 — https://www.retsinformation.dk/eli/lta/2026/135 (accessed 2026-10-20)
- Styrelsen for Samfundssikkerhed — Eftersyn af beskyttelsesrum — https://samsik.dk/beskyttelsesrum/eftersyn-af-beskyttelsesrum/ (accessed 2026-10-20)
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Sources
- Styrelsen for Samfundssikkerhed · Beskyttelsesrum checked 2026-10-20
- Styrelsen for Samfundssikkerhed · FAQ – Beskyttelsesrum checked 2026-10-20
- borger.dk (written by Styrelsen for Samfundssikkerhed) · Beskyttelsesrum og sikringsrum checked 2026-10-20
- Retsinformation · Lov om ændring af lov om beskyttelsesrum og CER-loven, lov nr. 135 af 27/01/2026 checked 2026-10-20
- Styrelsen for Samfundssikkerhed · Eftersyn af beskyttelsesrum checked 2026-10-20