Abandoned cities ghosts dead cities. The most terrible ghost towns, abandoned and forgotten. Abandoned castle in Zaklyuchye
Hello, friends!
You, of course, have heard about dead abandoned cities, abandoned villages, villages and towns, of which there are a lot, not only in the post-Soviet space, but all over the world: in the USA, China, Japan, Germany and so on.
Yes, today I want to talk about ghost towns in Russia. And not those that, due to their tragic (or not so tragic) fate, have become part of tourist trails, but those that are not so known to the general public, but are no less interesting.
So, friends, if you are here hoping to find information about Pripyat, which, frankly speaking, has already set the teeth on edge. Or about the tragic fate of Kadykchan or Kurshi, then I will disappoint you - they are deliberately ignored in this article. There are several reasons, and one of them is that it is better to share information and impressions about such cities after visiting them.
Dead cities and tourism
The relatively new genre of “post-apocalyptic” has gained wide popularity over the past half century. This is reflected in films, books, and games. More and more photographers, directors, people of other creative professions, and just thrill-seekers are visiting abandoned buildings.
Some people look for inspiration there; for others, dead cities are a blank canvas on which to create. And someone wants impressions and new emotions. It is now clear that this, whatever one may say, is another direction for tourism. It may not be the most popular, but it is certainly very interesting. Such cities allow you to see another life, to touch something mystical and creepy.
Abandoned settlements of the Central Federal District
Most often, such an unenviable fate occurs in small settlements whose residents worked at one, city-forming enterprise. If it closed, the settlement “closed.” Sometimes everything can be much more tragic, a vivid example of this is Pripyat.
My list is more likely to fall into the first category. These towns and villages "were the victims of an economic recession" rather than natural or man-made disasters. Below are 20 dead settlements in Russia, which are located in the Central Federal District (photos attached).
Not quite a ghost, some houses still have a glimmer of life. The history of this military town is eerily typical: the military unit was disbanded and everything was abandoned. The barracks, hangars, canteen, and so on, all of this is slowly crumbling.
The object is quite well known in certain circles of abandoned junk lovers.
Remember the forest fire in central Russia in 2010? So, this village got in the way destructive force fire. Private sector burned out almost completely, the boiler room, garages and vegetable gardens burned down. People fled for their lives, leaving their property behind.
Only high-rise buildings remained virtually untouched by the fire. As of 2015, Mokhovoye is a completely dead village.
This is Belevsky district. Chelyustino has been allegedly abandoned since 1985. There are 24 houses left in it, no people.
Well preserved. In some houses, even closets with clothes were found.
But this is a residential village. I don’t know what’s sadder - a ghost town or THIS.
At Glubokovsky's typical fate for a working mining camp. After the closure of all the mines, approximately 1,500 people still lived in it, but in the 90s of the last century people gradually began to leave.
The proximity of the regional center saves the village from complete extinction, but... how much effort does it take to live in it? After all, this is not even a small town.
Kostroma is a completely extinct settlement in central Russia, of which there are hundreds. This village is not the only one here, there are several more similar ones nearby.
There are several houses left in it, all in disrepair.
The once large village is now living out its life. Some houses are well preserved, this can be seen both from their carved frames and from their internal condition (there are household items in good condition).
Over the past few years, this settlement has been completely deserted. Nowadays Korchmino is a ghost village.
Another of the many dead villages in the Yaroslavl region. Everything that can be taken from there has already been stolen, everything that cannot is slowly rotting.
The once rich village, with large houses and courtyards (in almost every courtyard there is a barn, bathhouse, outbuildings) is slowly dying.
The exact name is unknown; there is a possibility that this village has a different name. There is another similar village nearby. It is difficult to find them, since the main mentions remain on old maps.
Inside, everything is as usual: several looted, destroyed houses, in which you can still find household items.
“This strange place Kamchatka” has been empty for about 10 years. Once upon a time this settlement belonged to the collective farm. Chapaeva. The collective farm collapsed, and the same thing happened to the village.
You can’t get to this village (except by tank), so it’s better to go on foot. On this moment in Dora there are several houses in poor condition, but before that life was in full swing.
The village was connected to the outside world by a narrow-gauge railway built in 1946. At the moment, what remains of it are several destroyed bridges in the surrounding area.
A small village with 10 houses, now only 2 have survived. The village has been completely dead for 4 years now.
We were in the same house (pictured), on the table there was a letter from the mother from the “zone” from her son.
Another ghost village, but in the Belozersky region. Apparently empty since 1995.
Several houses and baths near the river have survived. The houses are of the North Russian type - on a high basement with a vestibule at the rear of the house. Inside are some pieces of furniture and household items. Everything is in bad condition.
A very old village in the Vologda region, founded on a water trade route in the 13th century. The settlement flourished in the 18th century, and in 1708 it became the center of the Charonda region and received the status of a city. The population at that time was approximately 10,000. This did not last long.
In the 1770s, the town of Charonda again became a village, and by 1917 less than 1,000 people lived in it. Nowadays there are a dozen houses left in the village, and the number of inhabitants is 2 (more in the summer). The village is extremely inconvenient: there is no road there by land, there is no electricity (all the poles have long since rotted and fallen into the swamp).
Khmelina is also an old ghost village in the Central Federal District of Russia. It was founded in 1626, there were 700 households, a mill, factories, a collective farm, a school and a store.
However, since the 70s of the 20th century, residents gradually began to leave. As of November 2017, no one lives in the village anymore. The houses are abandoned, only a few are used as country houses.
An almost dead village in the deep forests of the Kostroma region. The condition is average: there are several houses almost untouched by time.
Near the village there are 4 more abandoned villages.
A remarkable place. In the vicinity of this farm, a stone labyrinth several thousand years old was discovered in the late 1980s.
By the way, it is believed that this labyrinth is a place of power.
Some of the houses are mud huts with thatched roofs and look cool. At the moment, the farm is almost completely abandoned.
Ghost villages on the map
The map is very approximate. Firstly, not all villages were mapped onto it, and secondly, those that were mapped may not be entirely correct. You understand that abandoned cities in Russia, and not only, are not always easy to find.
But you can roughly get your bearings; all areas are correct.
That's probably all. List of the dead I'm finishing towns and villages. But this is just one of many. I have not included many more areas of our vast Motherland.
P.S. All information about the once populated areas and photos are taken from the site urban3p.ru
There are many nice cities in the world where everyone wants to go and where everyone dreams of living, but there are also places from which it is better to stay away. Some of these dark and dangerous cities have a bad reputation for obvious reasons - high level crime, poor environment and so on. But there are also cities that are bad for living for completely different reasons, also intolerable for most people. Although, despite the daily horrors, some madmen and brave people manage to live there all their lives and even enjoy everyday things and the world around them. Horrible facts await you in this collection, so impressionable people should not continue reading. If anything happens, we warned you.
10. Cleveland, Ohio - the city with the highest concentration of serial killers
For some reason, Cleveland is becoming a hot spot on the US map when it comes to serial killers. This is perhaps one of the most dangerous and frightening places in America. And although no one can explain it, everything points to Cleveland as the serial killer capital of the world. It was in Cleveland that the notorious kidnapper Ariel Castro, the maniacs of recent years Anthony Sowell and Michael Madison lived, as well as the early 20th century murderers Jeffrey Dahmer and the never-identified Cleveland Butcher, the main investigator in whose case was Eliot Ness himself, who imprisoned the legendary gangster Al Capone (Ariel Castro, Anthony Sowell, Michael Madison, Jeffery Dahmer, Eliot Ness).
Somehow, new serial killers are constantly appearing in Cleveland, keeping the entire city in serious fear. Some of these criminals are known for dismembering the bodies of their victims and hiding their remains in different rooms in their home, while others, like Ariel Castro, prefer to hold innocent people captive and torture them for days. Some of the killers admitted that their actions were inspired by the examples of criminals of past decades, but this still does not explain why Cleveland has such a high concentration of serial killers. Unfortunately, the most likely reason is that this Big City is a very remote and isolated place, simultaneously gripped by an economic crisis, which ultimately affects the general atmosphere and psychological climate of Cleveland.
9. In Dubai, you face arrest if you are raped... you
Dubai is one of the largest and most important centers of the United Arab Emirates and is famous for its very strict and orthodox laws. The strictest attitude here is to issues related to women and sexual relations, since all this is very clearly regulated religious traditions Arab society. Because of this, some foreign women found themselves in very difficult circumstances during their trip to the city of seemingly entertainment and luxury. The tourists found themselves practically defenseless in the face of local regulations, although initially they relied on the protection of the Dubai police, and not on prosecution by law.
There are already at least two precedents in which European tourists were raped, went to the police with a complaint and were themselves arrested for allegedly inappropriate behavior. The fact is that regardless of whether the sexual act took place according to your will or not, extramarital sex is a crime in the UAE. Both rape victims ended up in prison, and the police announced that the tourists should have familiarized themselves with the laws of the country in which they came to vacation.
The first girl was from Norway, and the innocent tourist was released after an international outcry, although the rape victim was initially sentenced to 16 months in prison for admitting to extramarital sex, albeit against her will. Another case involved a British civilian who was raped in Dubai by two Englishmen. In response to her complaint, this tourist was also sent to prison. Most likely, with the assistance of the world community, she will be released. But you must admit that the idea that a rape victim is sent to prison sounds simply crazy and illogical. What is the point of punishing someone who is guilty only of defenselessness?
8. The most Big city South Africa, Johannesburg - a real hotbed of AIDS and a place where children are regularly raped 
We have already warned you that you will be very welcome in this rating. dark stories, so further reading is at your own responsibility.
South Africa is notorious for its high levels of violence, which has also led to the massive spread of AIDS. The problem is most acute in Johannesburg, where the FIFA World Cup was recently held. The media seriously raised the issue that visiting athletes and fans are at great risk of becoming victims of rape and contracting a terrible disease during this trip. However, the media kept silent about the terrible fact that most often it is children, and sometimes even babies, who become victims of violence here.
The AIDS problem is further aggravated by the fact that many local residents still prefer to turn to traditional healers instead of real qualified doctors. Sometimes healers advise patients to do absolutely ridiculous and cruel things. For example, they believe that AIDS can be cured by having sex with a virgin or a virgin. It was partly because of this that so many local men began to rape very young children, and sometimes even babies who were sometimes barely a few months old. Desperate patients hope that this way they will be cured and saved from death and suffering.
The incurable disease is transmitted through blood and sexual contact, and it is absolutely natural that, due to the advice of traditional healers, AIDS ends up spreading even more throughout the country and especially in Johannesburg. Unfortunately, no way to resolve the problem has yet been found.
7. Being a street child in Rio De Janeiro is life-threatening
Recently the Olympic Games took place in Rio de Janeiro, and local authorities did everything possible to hide from tourists and athletes that the city was in a terrible state and in complete ruin. Although they almost failed. The city now has a world-famous reputation as a place where robbery is a daily problem, and you need to be vigilant every second to avoid losing your own phone in the middle of a crowded street. Valuable things are snatched right out of your hands here.
However, while we reflect on the most obvious crimes, not everyone knows what terrible and inhumane measures the Brazilian authorities took to clean up Rio, both on a daily basis and before Olympic Games…
Most often, homeless children become street thieves. Street children, many of whom are barely 7 years old, either beg on the busy streets of Rio or steal from inattentive passers-by. They are simply forced to do this to survive. Of course, it is very easy to consider such children as a social threat, but most of them are lonely and defenseless creatures who just really want to eat. Unfortunately, many street children become drug addicts, because drugs are the only joy in their lives. There is no one to watch these guys, no one cares about them, and they choose the easiest and wrong ways to cope with daily stress and despair.
As it became known, the Brazilian police periodically conduct real raids - they catch homeless children in order to clear the streets of “unpleasant and dangerous elements” and put them in prisons for no reason, where juvenile prisoners live in the most inhumane conditions. Based on anecdotal evidence, the UN commission suspects that law enforcement officers sometimes simply kill street children because it is the fastest, easiest and cheap way clear the city streets of them. The Brazilian government does not acknowledge this fact, but the country's police have long been known for committing a huge number of murders each year.
The truth is that living on the streets of Rio de Janeiro is very difficult and dangerous. Apparently, even a tourist may find this place too sad and even dangerous if he finds himself outside an expensive hotel or a well-trodden path to the legendary statue of Christ the Redeemer.
6. Radiated wild boars are keeping the infamous Japanese city of Fukushima at bay.
We all remember the tragedy that happened in Fukushima, but many people do not even suspect that this nightmare is far from over for local residents who fled their homes due to the terrible accident. The damaged reactor is still causing problems, it has not yet been rendered harmless and will continue to pollute the environment for many years. The residents of Fukushima will never be able to return to their former way of life.
At the moment, Japanese authorities are convinced that radiation levels in the city are beginning to fall. They even believe that it is possible to announce the cancellation of the evacuation status and return people to their abandoned homes just 6 years after the nuclear power plant disaster. However, some signs indicate that the tragedy is far from over and it may be too late for the city to recover.
The townspeople may no longer be so concerned about the level of radiation, but now Fukushima is suffering from another problem - forest dwellers have begun to arrive in the abandoned area. The forest is practically encroaching on the ruins of orphaned houses, and wild animals have taken up residence in the empty buildings. Many property owners are concerned that wild boars, which have proliferated against the backdrop of radiation, have taken over the homes of city residents and are in no hurry to leave them. These creatures are usually more timid by nature, but it appears that the radiation has made them aggressive and fearless, making returning to Fukushima a rather dangerous undertaking.
To make matters worse, there are a number of conflicting studies suggesting that the radiation disaster affected thyroid problems in local children living here at the time of the accident. Although some scientists believe that the Japanese from this city were in poor health even before the disaster. In any case, life in Fukushima and its citizens will never be the same from now on.
5. Canadian London, Ontario, and the increased percentage of serial killers per capita
Between 1959 and 1984, the small Canadian town of London achieved the status of having the highest concentration of serial killers in the world. According to all available data, London, Ontario has become the most maniacal city on Earth in the history of mankind. At least 29 violent deaths occurred while the place was in the hands of numerous murderers. Only 13 of these crimes were solved, and it turned out that they were committed by three different villains.
A detective named Dennis Alsop who worked on these cases led Personal diary and mentioned in it his work on these terrible crimes. The investigator's notes were carefully reviewed research assistants University of Western Ontario, and they suggested that the unsolved murders could have been committed by four more criminals who were active almost simultaneously and used similar methods. The researchers also say that even if the remaining 16 people were killed by just one serial killer, London still retains its sad title of record-breaking city. Nowhere else in the world were as many serial killers on the rampage at the same time as here.
Criminal activity has apparently died down since then, as all the most dangerous criminals have either died or been arrested, and, fortunately, failed to pass on their life's work to a new generation of madmen. And yet the most important question still remains unanswered... Why did such a modest Canadian town become home to so many brutal killers for several years?
4. Residents of Pyongyang suffer from creepy electronic music every morning
Everyone knows that power in North Korea belongs to a dictatorial dynasty, and the most severe and incredibly inhumane laws reign in this country. Even the most privileged citizens who perfectly respect party politics are still forced to endure daily circumstances that would drive any of us crazy in no time.
Let's start with the fact that the residents North Korea are required to keep portraits of all the country's leaders at home, including both current and past leaders. No one has the right to turn their back on these portraits. This, of course, also applies to images of dictators in public places. In addition, the North Korean authorities decided that its citizens need to be reminded every morning of the deceased rulers, who are considered real gods in the country.
Every morning, opera music plays throughout Pyongyang, and the city's residents awaken to the eerie sounds of an electronic version of the song "Where Are You, Dear General" from the opera written by the late Kim Jong Il. Original composition It doesn't sound too bad, but the electronic version played over loudspeakers throughout the city sounds more like something out of a horror movie. In addition to the dreaded alarm clock, North Koreans are forced to listen to recorded political propaganda all day long. What if someone forgot something or misunderstood something? We need to repeat it. And so all my life...
3. The Mexican city of Ecatepec is a creepy place where women and girls constantly disappear
Residents of the Mexican city and municipality of Ecatepec are accustomed to hearing about constant armed robberies, and recently the Minister of the Interior of the entire country issued a special warning regarding this particular city. When the Pope himself came to Mexico for a visit, he also stopped by Ecatepec to see for himself how bad things were in this place. It’s not for nothing that the city is often called incredibly dirty and disgusting, and it seems that local residents have long resigned themselves to the state of affairs, have completely given up and do not value their home. But the worst thing you should know about this place is that it has the highest rate of deaths and disappearances of young girls in all of Mexico.
Mothers constantly turn to the police for help in finding their daughters and never return home with satisfactory answers. Some parents are told by law enforcement that their child's body was found in a sewer, but the police never provide any physical evidence that it is their daughter who is lying in the morgue. There are notices all over the city asking for help to find the missing girl or to provide the parents with at least some information that will help the family unite again.
Some fathers and mothers are contacted by cartel members and demand a huge ransom for their child. If it turns out that the family does not have the requested amount of money, the girls are simply hanged. Many townspeople are terribly worried that an exorbitant ransom will be demanded for their daughter, and then the child will either be killed or sold into slavery. Most local residents dream of leaving Yecatepec and leaving all its horrors behind, but poverty does not allow them to move to a safer place. The unfortunates have to overcome the hardships of life in this nightmare city every day for the rest of their lives.
2. Onitsha – the Nigerian city with the most polluted air in the world
When we wonder about the most polluted cities in the world, our thoughts usually lead us somewhere to China or India. However, the truth is that it is Nigeria that has become the current leader in environmental problems. The reason lies in the fact that last years this country has taken a significant lead in terms of development rates, and special attention is paid here to industrial production. For nature and citizens, this means large-scale environmental pollution, and Onicha feels this more than any other city in the country. Today the air here is the most uninhabitable in the world. Large and small particles of dust and ash are almost everywhere here, and there is nowhere to hide from them. In addition, sanitary standards in the city are practically not observed, and there are piles of garbage everywhere.
The main reason for the disaster in Onitsha is the rapidly developing industrialization, and in this city there are factories of almost every industrial sector imaginable. Combine this with lax government oversight of quality and safety standards, and you're bound to end up with a city that's simply dangerous to breathe in, and that won't change for generations.
However, local residents are not very worried about this. Perhaps they are simply careless or are accustomed to this state of affairs, although for the most part they simply have no other choice. Recently a prestigious magazine The Guardian conducted a survey in Onitsha about what townspeople think about the environmental situation, and the majority of respondents did not consider air pollution a serious problem.
However, failure to accept or know about the dangers of industrial emissions does not change the fact that local residents are already suffering from poor air quality. This is especially noticeable in child mortality. Still, it is interesting how talented a person is in psychological adaptation to almost any conditions. For those who have always lived in Onichu, hearing that their city is the dirtiest and most dangerous in the world came as a big surprise.
1. Mumbai - an Indian city struggling with the garbage that fills it
Today, Mumbai is practically buried under mountains of garbage, and the Indian government is desperately looking for a way out of this situation. The problem is so serious that every day hundreds of garbage trucks line up in a long line to take new amounts of waste to the landfill. The landfill is already almost full to capacity, and Mumbai's other two large landfills have long been unable to accommodate the city's new waste. Someone suggested simply organizing new landfills, but there is justifiable fear that this will not solve the problem, but will only make it worse. The thing is that, both in Mumbai and in other Indian cities, a waste recycling system simply does not exist.
Almost all types of waste are constantly loaded onto trucks and taken to landfills. The problem of waste has become so serious that it has started to flood the streets, and some citizens are trying to get rid of garbage by burning it in the middle of Mumbai, thereby only worsening the environmental disaster and further polluting the city's air. Experts worry that if the authorities decide to open new landfills, the crisis will only intensify, since it is necessary to solve the very essence of the problem, and not its manifestations.
Experts believe that if the country’s industrialization process continues to increase its pace, it will be vital to open waste recycling centers in the country and introduce into society the habit of responsible treatment of household waste in order to reduce its amount. Subject to a change in thinking ordinary population and the introduction of appropriate infrastructure, theoretically even such a large and rapidly developing city as Mumbai will ultimately still be able to win this garbage war.
Culture
Ghost towns may seem scary and sad to some, but they are quite interesting places, since they retain part of the soul of the society that lived here, but which has long left these places. There are a large number of ghost towns in the world, whose stories always have a sad ending, however, the reasons why the local residents left them are completely different from each other. Many of these cities have long been hidden underground, and archaeologists are trying to dig them up, but some of them were abandoned relatively recently, so life in them seemed to have stopped and we can see the life of that time.
1) Bodie, California, USA
Probably the most famous ghost town in the United States is Bodie, which is located east of San Francisco. The city was once a thriving community thanks to a nearby gold mine. It was the precious metal that attracted thousands of wealth hunters from all over the country to these places; he also forced local residents to abandon their homes and move to other areas. However, nothing lasts forever, so as far as Bodie is concerned, as gold reserves began to dwindle, more people began to move. In 1932, there was a fire in the city that destroyed the entire business part of the town and finally decided its fate.
2) San Zhi, Taiwan
San Zhi is a city that began to be built in the early 1980s according to the latest concept, whose architecture should have made it known throughout the world as an ultra-modern city of the rich. However, due to a number of problems that occurred in the city during construction, in particular due to a large number of accidents, as well as due to insufficient funding, the project was no longer developed, although most of the buildings were already standing. Today no one lives in the city; all the engineers and builders also left it, without completing what they started.
3) Varosha, Cyprus
Once upon a time, these places were famous throughout the world for being a luxury resort attracting thousands of wealthy tourists, including many celebrities. Everything changed in 1974 when the Turks invaded Cyprus. They turned this piece of paradise into a fortress and cut off access to the area even for local residents who fled during the attack.
4) Gunkanjima, Japan
Another town that began to develop thanks to the minerals found here is a city on the island of Hashima, which is often called Gunkanjima (Japanese for “cruiser”). At the end of the 19th century, coal was found near a small rock in the sea, during the mining of which an artificial island was formed, where the workers settled. Thus, little by little, the city of miners began to be built. The city became very popular, and crowds of people began to flock here. In 1959, the city had a population of 1,391 people per hectare of land, and there were less than 5 hectares! However, later other alternative coal deposits were found, residents began to gradually move out, and eventually it became clear that the city was doomed. Despite the fact that the city has long been abandoned by residents, many tourists come here to admire it.
5) Balestrino, Italy
This city, which today is one of the ghost towns of Europe, hides many secrets, in particular, no one knows exactly when it was built, and it is also not clear exactly why the local residents began to leave it. Balestino refuses to reveal his secrets. However, it is obvious that natural disasters that took place about 60 years ago forced local residents to look for a new shelter.
6) Katoli World, Taiwan
Katoli World was one of the most successful amusement parks on the island of Taiwan. It was famous for its fun roller coasters and many other attractions. Why was it abandoned? In 1999, a powerful earthquake occurred in this area. Thousands of people died, and the park itself was so badly damaged that it has not been restored to this day. It seems it has closed its doors forever.
7) Centralia, Pennsylvania. USA
This city also fell victim to the closure of coal mines, which were the main source of income for the city's residents. There was no other work in this area, so the townspeople were forced to move. The situation was further complicated by the fact that there were underground fires in the city that could not be extinguished for many years. Naturally, no one wanted to live on such a powder keg, because harmful gases were released into the air, poisoning everything around. When the situation became unbearable, the local population left their homes.
8) Yashima, Japan
City with ancient history Yashima is the site of a famous battle that took place in 1185 during the Gempei War. Famous for the temple, this place was a popular tourist attraction in the 1980s. Funds were invested to build hotels, shops and other tourist facilities. However, suddenly everyone realized that tourists were unlikely to come here due to the proximity of rock mining enterprises, so construction was frozen, perhaps for another thousand years.
9) Pripyat, Ukraine
It may seem strange that a relatively large city of 50 thousand people was deserted in an instant. Pripyat is notorious for the events that took place in this area in 1986, namely, a disaster occurred at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant near the city. Due to dangerous levels of radiation, residents were forced to evacuate quickly, never to return to the once thriving city.
10) Craco, Italy
This beautiful city, once inhabited by 2,000 people, is now abandoned as a result of a series of misfortunes that have befallen it, from war, poor farming conditions and a series of earthquakes, which have convinced the last remaining inhabitants that the time has come to find a more suitable place to live.
11) Kolmanskop, Namibia
In 1908, the diamond mining industry became a very profitable business in Namibia. People from all over the country flocked to the Namib Desert to try their luck. In just 2 years, an entire city was built, and in an area that had previously been completely barren and of no use to anyone. Kolmanskop became a prosperous town with a school, a hospital, exclusive residential buildings and even a casino. Everything was fine until diamond sales began to decline after the First World War. Since local businessmen were losing profits, they went in search of new income. Food became increasingly difficult to find, and city residents began to leave Kolmanskop. The town became a ghost town back in the 1950s. Since then, the desert has increasingly engulfed the once beautiful and rich buildings.
12) Kadykchan, Russia
The city of Kadykchan once had 12 thousand inhabitants, who were mostly coal miners. After the collapse of the Union, this city suffered seriously. Due to the reduction in demand for coal, many companies were forced to close. And finally, a collapse in a coal mine, which occurred in 1996, resulting in the death of 6 people, decided the fate of the city. In the following months, the city's residents were evacuated to nearby towns, and the population dwindled to a trickle until it disappeared completely.
13) Gilman, Colorado, USA
The town of Gilman was founded in 1886 during the Colorado Silver Boom. The mining industry made Gilman a center for lead and zinc mining throughout the state. However, a hundred years later, in 1986, the city faced the beginning of its end. Mining became unprofitable, and the presence of toxic pollutants was also discovered. Groundwater pollution has made the city uninhabitable. In the end, the Security Administration environment ordered the evacuation of residents and closed the city to visitors.
14) Oradour-sur-Glane, France
The village of Oradour-sur-Glane in France consists of several ruined buildings reminiscent of the terrible events of World War II, more precisely June 1944, when the Germans decided to punish the residents of the city of Oradour-sur-Vaires for supporting the French Resistance. By mistake, the Nazis attacked the nearby village of Oradour-sur-Glane. All villagers were killed. Today the village remains a kind of monument dedicated to those events, and is also a ghost town.
Ghost towns are scattered all over the planet and silently keep their secrets. The creations of human hands, abandoned by people, stand deserted and silent for decades. They are not destroyed, they are simply abandoned - at one point people left them due to insurmountable reasons. The reason for this could be the threat of a natural disaster, man-made disaster, war or economic crisis.
This list contains the most famous ghost towns in the world!
1 Pripyat, Ukraine
Perhaps the most famous ghost town is Pripyat. This city in Ukraine is relatively young - it was built in 1970. In 1986, about 50 thousand people lived there, the first park was opened, and the infrastructure was actively developing. And one day - April 26, 1986, the city was evacuated due to an accident at Chernobyl nuclear power plant. This city is still full of radiation, so excursions and groups of stalkers enter its territory only occasionally.
2 Gunkanjima, Japan
Hashima Island in the East China Sea, nicknamed Gunkanjima (cruiser), was an ordinary rock near Nagasaki in the early 19th century. Coal was discovered there, so the Japanese artificially built an island and began to develop the deposit. The city was the most densely populated place on the entire planet - with an area of 0.063 square meters. m. lived more than 5 thousand people! The peak of activity was reached in the middle of the 20th century, and in 1974 the mines were completely closed, and the city became a ghost.
3 Kolmanskop, Namibia
The history of this city began in 1908, when one of the railway workers discovered diamonds in the southern part of the Namib Desert. The field was transferred to August Strauch, who built a German town on this site with a hospital, schools and a stadium. But the diamond reserves dried up after a couple of years, and people faced terrible conditions. The city was constantly bombarded by sandstorms; there was no water or communication with the world. In 1954, the last inhabitants left the city, and it was left standing in the middle of the desert.
4 Famagusta, Cyprus
In the 1970s, the city of Famagusta was the tourist center of Cyprus. It was especially famous; it housed many hotels and hotels that were visited by celebrities from all over the world. In 1975, Famagusta was invaded by the Turkish army and expelled the Greeks from their homes. The Varosha quarter has become a ghost town, because according to a UN resolution of 1984, only its residents can return to it. At the moment, this huge tourist area of the city is slowly being consumed by nature.
5 Kilamba, Angola
Cities do not always become ghosts because they have been abandoned. Some cities were never settled, such as the huge city of Nova Cidid de Kilamba near the capital of Angola. It is designed for 500 thousand people, and more than $3 billion was spent on construction. In 2012, the city slowly began to be populated, but in fact it still remains a ghost. There are few middle class residents of Angola who could afford such expensive housing. At the moment, there is only one school there, to which people take their children from afar.
6 Tawarga, Libya
The ghost town in Libya was abandoned by local residents in 2011 due to genocide. The rebels began a real persecution of the indigenous peoples of Tawarga, which was once founded by the descendants of black slaves. In addition, this city was under the protection of the Gaddafi regime, so the rebels mercilessly destroyed the population - 1,300 people are still considered missing. Almost 30 thousand people left the city and still cannot return to their homes. The Libyan government cannot provide them with safety and protection from abuse.
7 Kayakoy, Türkiye
The Turkish village of Kayakoy has a rich history, but that hasn't stopped it from becoming a ghost. It was founded in the 19th century by the Greek community and had a developed infrastructure. But in the 1920s, the Greeks were forced to leave the areas belonging to the Turks, so the villagers simply left overnight. In addition, in 1957, a powerful earthquake destroyed the last islands of civilization in Kayakoy.
8 Sanzhi, Taiwan
This city can hardly be called a ghost, since in 2008 a decision was made to demolish it. Unfortunately, it belongs to those buildings where people have never settled. In 1975, it was decided to build an unusual complex of houses in the shape of UFO saucers. They were built from fiberglass and concrete, taking into account last word technology. However, in the 1980s, when the complex was almost completed, a crisis began in Asia, which led to a freeze in construction. The alien houses were abandoned, and Taiwan decided to demolish them to build a park on the site.
9 Oradour-sur-Glane, France
This village in France received the title of martyr city. Today it still stands as a silent reminder of the atrocities of the war, and a new town of the same name has been built nearby. Oradour in 1944 was inhabited by French partisans who captured a German officer. In retaliation, the SS killed all the inhabitants of the village - 205 children, 240 women and 197 men. Since then the city has been a memorial center.
10 Kadykchan, Russia
One of the most famous abandoned cities in Russia is Kadykchan. It is located in the Magadan region, and was completely abandoned by people in the early 2000s. The city was built in the mid-20th century near a coal deposit, but after an explosion in 1996 the mine was closed. Residents of the village began to be slowly resettled, and in 2001 the houses were completely cut off from electricity.
Paris exists not only in France, but also in China, although it is very small. Construction of the city of Tianducheng began in 2007, when there was a fashion in China for copies of European landmarks. There is the Eiffel Tower, three times smaller than the original, the Arc de Triomphe and the Park of Versailles. However, housing here is so expensive that the city has practically remained a ghost - despite its splendor, no one lives in Tianducheng.
All these cities are completely deserted, so they gradually fall into disrepair, and nature wins its territory back, covering the gray buildings with lush greenery.