Abandoned Places Then And Now

1. Pripyat, Ukraine

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The nuclear wasteland now known from the Chernobyl disaster occurred on the 26th of April 1986. It is one of only two nuclear disasters that is given the maximum score of seven on the severity rating. The disaster struct while running safety testing on a steam turbine, used to power feedback emergency pumps. It is believed that 31 died directly from the explosion, however radiation has had a knock on effect to over 4,000 people.

2. Centralia, Pennsylvania, USA

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Centralia is a coal mine fire that has been raging since May 1962. Mines are still burning and are expected to due to the sheer size of the mine. At 300ft deep and covering 3700 acres of land, the people of Centralia have reduced in population from 1,500 to 5. The heat caused by the constant burning has forced people to leave the town behind, due to homes and roads being destroyed.

3. Hashima Island, Japan

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Hashima Island is located eight miles from the coast of Nagasaki, it is one of many abandoned islands in the Nagasaki Prefecture. It was once a coal mine which has now been depleted, causing the closure and abandonment of the island. Hashima is a reminder of where war crimes were committed and forced labour occurred during Japan's industrialisation, prior to WWII.

4. Detroit, Michigan, USA

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Detroit fell victim to suburbanisation, starting in the 1940's. At its peak, Detroit had a population of 1.8 million, however, the redundancy of jobs caused by car factories such as Ford, Dodge, Packard and Chrysler. Car companies began to need less human labour and turning to machinery, causing people to leave the city. Inevitably turning it into one of the biggest abandoned cities in the world.

5. Kolmanskop, Namibia

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In 1908, when Namibia was part of German South-West Africa, a German named Zacharias Lewala found a diamond while working on a railroad. The Germans began to mine and a small town was built with hospitals, power stations, a school and other facilities. However, the diamonds began to dry up around the time end of the First World War. Workers left homes behind to find more convenient mining work further south, therefore leaving the place completely abandoned.

6. Angkor Wat, Cambodia

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These temple ruins located in Cambodia, are thought to be the largest religious structure in the world. Originally made to worship Vishnu, a Hindu God, it was gradually transformed into a joint Buddhist-Hindu temple. Unfortunately, this beautiful temple was abandoned due to the collapse of the surrounding water networks, in addition to the unforgiving rain in monsoon season.

7. Craco, Italy

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Located 25 miles inland from the Gulf of Taranto, Craco is now a ghost town which was abandoned in the late 20th century. Craco was built on a clay-rich soil based hill, which resulted into becoming a victim of landslides. This uncertainty of living as well as your village moving from time to time, ended in abandonment. It is now used in some films such as James Bond's Quantum of Solace (2008) and The Nativity Story (2006).

8. Bodie, California, USA

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Bodie used to be a booming gold-mining town in the 1870's, with its population growing to around 7,000-10,000. Like most mining towns in America, the mineable resources depleted after years of extraction, causing the people to leave behind what seemed to be lots of breweries, brothels, gambling dens and a red light district. After a fire in 1892, most residents left to find new homes. Hence the eery nature of the place now!

9. Oradour-sur-Glane, France

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Oradour-sur-Glane was a massacre that took place on June 10th 1944. This terrible event was the German Waffen-SS companies response to the push back from D-Day. 643 individuals were murdered for helping with the resistance against the Nazis. Six people survived the massacre and Robert Hébras lived until February 11th 2023. The village was never rebuilt as president Charles de Gaulle ordered the ruins to remain as a reminder and permanent memorial.

10. Pripyat Amusement Park, Ukraine

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These chilling images show an amusement park that was set to be open days after the Chernobyl disaster, which took place a couple of miles away. Rumours state that the park was opened for a short time to distract the Ukrainian people of the nearby disaster. This untouched amusement park has become famous for demonstrating the devastation and abandonment of the area. Would you go and visit when it's safe to do so?

11. Humberstone & Santa Laura Saltpeter Works, Chile

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In 1872, these two sites in Chile, South America were some of the largest saltpeter extractors of the region. However, following the Great Depression, new mining methods and development of the synthesis of ammonia led to the mines becoming redundant. After the abandonment, they were then declared national monuments due to their size, they now serve as World Heritage sites by UNESCO.

12. Gunkanjima, Japan

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Gunkanjima or 'Battleship Island', was an old mining island which was home to 5,000 residents. Quite an impressive population considering the island is only 150 meters wide by 480 meters long! Every part of the island is built up, hence the nickname. In 1974 the mine was abandoned, leaving the buildings exposed and without repair, tornados and poor weather have left the island with a creepy, ghost town look to the place.

13. Nara Dreamland, Japan

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Nara Dreamland was opened to the public on the first of July, 1961. The entrance and many other aspects was built to make exactly like the U.S. Disneyland. Unfortunately for Nara Dreamland, Tokyo opened up their own Disneyland in 1983 and popularity of dropped to the less favorable Nara Dreamland. It was cheaper to completely abandon the place instead of taking rides apart, and in 2006 it was leave it behind for ten years, before it was demolished.

14. Poveglia Island, Italy

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Poveglia is one of the more disturbing locations on the list. This island was used to quarantine anyone that was thought to have the plague. They would serve out the remainder of their days in a place where the soil was thought to be made of old burnt bodies and bone. It is thought to be haunted by many Italians, the hospital on the island was closed in 1968 after the death of a doctor. Leaving it off-limits for visitors.

15. Maunsell Forts, UK

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The Maunsell forts are a serious of army and naval defences, built during the start of the Second World War to protect Britain. The 4,500 tonne towers were named after their designer Guy Maunsell, these designs provided structures similar to a military grade bunker, storing anti aircraft munitions, storage areas for generators and dining. The forts were decommissioned in the early 1950's and have been used sparingly since.

16. Bhangarh Fort, India

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This for was built in the 16th century, containing over 9,000 houses. It is thought of as one of the most haunted places in India, as rumours circulated that the whole fort was abandoned overnight! You are not able to visit after sunset and there is a curse named 'Guru Balu Nath', which people seem to believe is the reason for the abandonment. Would you risk visiting?

17. The Eastern State Penitentiary, Pennsylvania, USA

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This famous prison once housed Al Capone and famous bank robber Willie Sutton. At it's time of building it was the biggest and most expensive prison in the US, which set the standard and layout for 300 prisons throughout the world. The prison was shut down due to collapse from overcrowding and was closed in 1971 with the intention of redevelopment. In the years following it has served as a preserved ruin, with tours available all year round.

18. North Brother Island, New York, USA

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North Brother Island is 22 acre plot located between South Bronx and Riker the infamous prison, Rikers Island. The island is illegal to visit and was once the location for quarantined patients including 'Typhoid Mary'. All that stands there now is a bird sanctuary, 'even the birds don't like it there' according to locals. If opened back up, would you risk going to this failed rehabilitation centre?

19. Waverly Hills Sanatorium, Kentucky, USA

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This two story hospital was opened in 1910 as a place to treat tuberculosis patients. After the hospital being built and housing 40-50 patients, it was then continued to serve for another 60 years before drug development stopped the need for such hospital. Due to the high death rate from the 'white plague', a 'Body Chute' was created to transport bodies as subtly as possible while decreasing chance of infection.

20. Château Miranda, Belgium

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Château Mirana (Noisy Castle), was nicknamed after it became a orphanage and a holiday camp for sickly children. The beautiful castle was designed in 1866 but wasn't finished until 1907. The family that owned the castle could not afford to keep up the refurbishments, yet didn't want to sell it. Apart from being used in American series Hannibal, the site has been only been used for urban exploration since.

21. El Hotel del Salto, Colombia

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This hotel was once a beautiful spot 18 miles southwest of the Colombian capital Bogota.  It was placed next to the Tequendama falls, so guest had a magnificent view of cascading water as they looked out their windows. However, Colombian people used to come here to commit suicide, with hotel guests being able to hear the screams. This left people believing the building became haunted and heavy pollution of the river caused it to shut down.

22. Gulliver's Kingdom, Japan

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This theme park which features a 147 ft long statue of Lemuel Gulliver, is located two and a half hours away from Tokyo. The theme park only managed to stay open for four years due to lack of visitors. Being next to the Aokigahara forest may have something to do with its demise, as this forrest is a well known suicide destination.

23. Sanzhi UFO House, Taiwan

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These strange looking houses were originally built and marketed towards U.S. military officers that were returning from East Asian postings. Accidentally car accidents and suicides during the construction of these buildings resulted in the abandonment of the project. They stood for several years and were used for some cinema-photography, however they were demolished in 2008.

24. Kowloon Walled City, Hong Kong

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This once densely populated city was mainly ungoverned due to the fleeing refugees from the Second World War. The city contained 50,000 residents within a fairly modest 6.4 acre walls, by the late 1980s it was controlled by local triads and had high rates of gambling, prostitution and drug abuse. Due to these reasons it's demolition was announced in March 1993.

25. Kalavantin Durg, India

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'Durg' translates to fort in Marathi, although there are several reports stating that there is no fort. This tricky climbing challenge has seen a handful of deaths, resulting in climbers only being allowed to visit during certain hours and with assistance from local guides. The uncertainty around the use for this 'drug' is intriguing, and the reason for abandonment is unknown.

26. Six Flags, New Orleans, USA

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This once fully functioning theme park was opened under the name 'Jazzland', however it was renamed Six Flags after following the previous operators bankruptcy. This theme park fell victim to Hurricane Katrina, with the park being forced to close for years. When Orleans ended its 75 year lease, the park was forced to shut and the damage was thought to be too expensive to repair.

27. City Hall Station, New York City, USA

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This beautiful station, also known as the City Hall Loop was opened in 1904 as one of the original 28 stations in the New York Subway system. Unfortunately, when stations needed to be extended due to the demand for longer carriages, the design of the station meant that it couldn't be extended. Therefore, forcing it into becoming a museum, the shortly after a city landmark.

28. Varosha, Cyprus

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In its heyday Varosha was most visited place in Cyprus, high rise building for hotels and apartments were built to cater for the increasing tourism. The 1970's brought along famous celebrities like Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton and Brigitte Bardot. Frustratingly for outsiders, Varosha was placed under control of the UN. Their decision to forbid anyone resettling there, who wasn't originally forced out, lead to the abandonment of the island.

29. Salton Riviera, California, USA

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This resort community was developed in the 1950's, it had plenty of initial success, with profit of $4.25 million in lot sales within the first weekend of opening. Lack of investment and development resulted in the resort community collapsing and the increased sea level resulted in the land flooding with pesticides and lack drainage made the place unsanitary. Who would want to live somewhere with no working sewage system?

30. Beelitz- Heilstätten Hospital, Germany

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This hospital located just outside of Berlin was built in 1898. It served as a field hospital in the First World War and housed casualties from mustard gas and the recently developed machine gun... it also treated a young soldier by the name of Adolf Hitler. Their efforts for him during the First World War resulted in Hitler requiring the hospital to house nazis in the Second World War too. It has since been used for cinematography but due to the nature of its use, it has been shut down.