| The 500 Meter Zone, or Security Strip as it was known by the East Germans, was a virtual no-man’s-land. No activity was permitted in the area unless it was under close supervision of the Grenztruppen. In order to keep the inhabitants of villages other potential escapees out of the protected zone, in 1966 the East German government began erecting a special sensor fence along the zone's boundary. The fence was able to detect a person climbing or cutting through the fence in an attempt to enter the 500 Meter Zone. If an intrusion was detected an electronic signal was sent to the local border monitoring station where an alert was issued and patrols were sent to the location of the disturbance. The fence was also used to isolate the few villages or traveled roadways that were located within the 500 Meter Zone and in close proximity to the border fortifications. | 
First type of fence SSZ-55 |
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| The
first generation of the Signal Security Fence resembled a hybrid of the
barbed wire and mesh border fences. The lower half of the fence was
comprised of the mesh fencing used in the modern border fences while the top
section used several rows of
electrified barbed wire. If the wires were cut or contacted each other, it
sent a signal to the monitoring station and activated a local alarm or
signal light at the sight of the intrusion. A reaction force team was
then sent to
investigate the alarm.
The modernized version of the signal fence was similar to the earlier type but was comprised mostly of mesh fencing. It also had electrified barbed wire on the top portion, but it more closely resembled the types of fencing that surround many warehouses in the U.S. today. Beside the fence was a special two meter wide plowed area so the Grenztruppen could inspect the fence area for tracks of potential escapees. Even the gates of the fence were monitored so that the Grenztruppen could tabs on patrols and work details entering the 500 Meter Zone. Although a formidable obstacle, the Signal Security Fence was not impregnable. In one case an electrician who lived in the border area determined the circuitry of the fence and disabled it so he could escape undetected. In another instance human error came into a play when a border guard mistakenly left a signal fence gate open and a family drove their truck through the gate and all the way to the border fence where they escaped to freedom. Escapees, though, were not the only problem. Animals that came in contact with the fence also set off alarms. The Grenztruppen therefore had to put a simple electric fence near the signal fence or allow openings in the fence so that small animals such as rabbits could travel through the fence without triggering alarms. After the border opened and the subsequent reunification of the two German nations, Westerners got a first hand look at the Signal Security Fence. It was an amazing array of wires and electrical connections. Today, though, most all traces of the Signal Security Fence are gone. In some areas segments of the fence have been kept either as a tourist attraction or as a reminder of the divided German nations. |
The new SSZ-80 signal fence under construction. Cost: 170,000 DDR per kilometer. - BBP photo |
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A village fences off with SSZ-80.- Ritter photo |
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A hole left for animals to get through the fence. - Erwin Ritter photo |
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