10 Creepiest Russian Ghost Towns

Abandoned cities are a pretty creepy sight. Once there by chance, you can feel like a hero of horror films. Silence, ruined buildings, gloomy atmosphere. But once people lived and worked here, children’s laughter sounded, life was in full swing. Every town has its own sad story. It seems that the human voice will never sound in this gloomy place, but no, these cities still attract people. Most of them are desperate people who are interested in history, because information about these settlements is freely available. We present to your attention a rating of the most terrible Russian ghost towns that people left.

1. Colendo | Sakhalin region

The village was founded in 1963. People lived there quite well, there were all conditions for living. School, kindergarten, shops, fire station. There was even a club in the village, as well as several high-rise buildings and private houses. About 5 thousand people lived here. In 1995 there was an earthquake. Many buildings were damaged, people had nowhere to live. In addition, not everything was so smooth in Colendo, there were a number of problems with its content. The authorities decided to liquidate the village. Now on the site of the village there is a dense forest, a couple of garages and several collapsed summer cottages. Therefore, stalkers have absolutely nothing to do here. It is not known exactly when the buildings were demolished. In social networks, the latest photos of the abandoned village are dated 2009.

9. Industrial | Komi Republic

The village was founded in 1956. It arose due to the construction of two mines “Central” and “Industrial”. The number of Industrial was 12 thousand people. The infrastructure was at a fairly high level. What was not there: a skating rink, a restaurant, a club, a school with a swimming pool. But in 1998, a misfortune happened in the village. An explosion occurred in one of the mines, killing several dozen people. The mine was closed, people had nowhere to work. The population was declining, people were leaving Promyshlenny. After the closure of infrastructure facilities, it became impossible to live there, the residents were offered to relocate. The village is located across the river, and now you can get there only through a dilapidated bridge.

8. Halmer-Y Republic of Komi

Another ghost village located in the Komi Republic. Geologists discovered coal deposits in 1942. Later a settlement was built here. In 1957, the mine began its work, but not so much coal was mined. The maximum number of residents living in Halmer-Yu was 7,7 thousand people. Hospitals, schools, shops, kindergartens, the House of Culture, a dispensary, a hostel. There was even a weather station. The town was connected to the Vorkuta railway, there was no motor road. In 1993, the mine was liquidated, so it brought only losses. In 1996, Halmer-Yu also decided to liquidate. The residents were relocated. Now it is used instead of a military training ground.

7. Kadychkan | Magadan Region

Kadychkan suffered exactly the same fate. Built during the Great Patriotic War, it also became the place where the miners and their families settled. A mine was built not far from it. But in 1996 there was a major accident. Many people died, about a thousand people. The authorities decided to liquidate the village. However, the locals did not want to leave the village. Then the electricity was cut off in the village, and heat was no longer supplied to the houses. Arson began in the private sector. Everything was done so that the inhabitants of Kadychkan finally left it. Now the town still exists and if you wish, you can visit it.

6. Mologa | Yaroslavskaya oblast

The city was located on the right bank of the Mologa River. For the first time the name of the river is mentioned in history in 1149. Nobody knows the exact date when the city was built. For 8 centuries, life in a small provincial town went on as usual. In 1935, for the first time, residents heard that the construction of the Uglich and Rybinsk hydroelectric stations was starting nearby. The government reassured them, promising that the territory of the city is not included in the flood zone. The war came, and it was decided from above that more powerful hydroelectric stations were needed. Not only the inhabitants of Mologa were affected, but also 700 nearby villages. Everything was flooded. People were moved to other settlements. Particularly resistant were recognized as crazy and placed in medical institutions. When the water level drops in the Rybinsk reservoir, you can see the remains of the ancient city.

5. Neftegorsk | Sakhalin region

Built in 1964, the urban-type settlement was one of the most comfortable in Sakhalin. Most of the residents are oil workers with their families. In 1995 there was a strong earthquake. Then 3157 people lived in the village, 2040 of them died. A few days after the earthquake, they cleared the rubble and helped the survivors. They decided not to restore the village, and the survivors settled throughout Sakhalin. In Neftegorsk, a memorial plate with the names of the victims was installed. Relatives still come here to honor their memory.

4. Neftegorsk | Sakhalin region

The village was founded in 1957. The Shumikhinskaya mine, where many men worked, closed in 2000. People simply lost their jobs and were forced to leave. Once the population of the village was 11 thousand people. In 2017, about 1000 people lived there, almost all of them were pensioners. The village became famous thanks to one local resident. She got through to the president on the air of the Direct Line with Vladimir Putin program and talked about how people live in the village. “Second Chechnya” was the name given to the Jubilee by the inhabitants. Destroyed buildings, lack of work, gradual elimination of infrastructure facilities. An inspection even came to the village, but everything remained the same there.

3. Kursha-2 | Ryazan Oblast

At the beginning of the 1000th century, a settlement was formed in the Ryazan region at the end station of a narrow-gauge railway. The railroad was built here to transport timber. The country constantly needed a forest. About 1936 people lived in the village. In August XNUMX, the village was destroyed by fire. The cause of the fire is unknown, the weather was very hot. They tried to run away from the fire, ride on horseback, but all the efforts of people were in vain. Almost everyone died. Only those who hid in the river or climbed into the well managed to survive. After some time, the village was rebuilt again, but it did not last long. Now there you can see the same railway, destroyed houses and a cross over the mass grave of those who died from the fire.

2. Charonda | Vologodskaya Oblast

It is officially believed that the Charonda settlement arose in the 7th century on the White Sea-Onega waterway in the Novgorod Republic, however, scientists suggest that it was founded in the Neolithic period and is more than 2007 thousand years old. A few centuries ago it was a rich independent region. All trade routes passed through the city. But gradually the number of inhabitants decreased, things in the city got worse, soon it was renamed into a village, and later into a village. In 8, only XNUMX people remained in Charonda, it is not known whether anyone lives there now. But tourists love to visit this place. Church, destroyed buildings, beautiful nature – this is what attracts stalkers and just travel lovers.

1. Iultin | Chukotka Autonomous Okrug

There are a lot of abandoned villages in Chukotka, but this one was the largest. In the 50s, a tin deposit was found here. People began to come here with their families. They built houses, worked at local city-forming enterprises. In the 90s, the mine and the mining and processing plant had to be closed, they worked at a loss. In 1989, about 5 thousand inhabitants lived here. In 2000, not a single one, people left in search of a better life. The village still exists, but it is not easy for tourists to get there.