The idea of trucking records to a hidden, blastproof underground storage facility sounds so very 1950s, but increased regulation and electronic delivery systems have stoked the demand for Iron Mountain’s off-site archiving services. The drive from the Pittsburgh airport to the secret underground facility winds through rolling Pennsylvania farmlands and woods, past quaint old churches and through tiny towns that time has overlooked. The access road to the site is unmarked, but written directions say to turn left just after a certain picnic shelter. A guard stops the car and searches it. Satisfied that the visitors don’t have weapons, cameras or tape recorders, he advises driving forward to the next checkpoint and honking the horn. There, at the mouth of an old limestone mine, a massive metal gate grinds open, admitting the car to an underground guard post for more searches and interrogations. Just when it seems that every conceivable security measure has been attended to, a guard hands the visitors a fire extinguisher and says it must be carried in their vehicle wherever it might travel in the 20 miles of tunnels that run through the mine. Full Story
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