10 Places That Don't Exist Anymore

Summary

This video script explores locations abandoned or destroyed due to human activity or natural disasters. From the ghost town of Witten in Australia, ravaged by asbestos mining, to the perpetually burning town of Centralia, Pennsylvania, each site tells a story of environmental catastrophe. The script also recounts historical losses like the Tomb of Mausolus in Turkey and the Lighthouse of Alexandria, Egypt. It highlights modern tragedies such as the Fukushima nuclear disaster in Japan and the Chernobyl meltdown, which led to the desolation of Pripyat, Ukraine. The narrative serves as a stark reminder of the irreversible impacts of human actions on our environment and history.

Takeaways

• 🔥 The ghost town of Witten in Western Australia was abandoned due to an underground fire that started in 1962.
• 🏭 Pitcher, Oklahoma was once a leading producer of lead and zinc but became a Superfund site due to toxic waste and lead poisoning among its children.
• 🏺 The Tomb of Mausolus in Turkey was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World but was destroyed by earthquakes and repurposed by Crusader Knights.
• 🚫 Gilman, Colorado suffered from severe ecological damage due to mining operations, leading to its designation as a Superfund site and eventual abandonment.
• 🗼 The Lighthouse of Alexandria in Egypt stood for over a thousand years before being damaged by earthquakes and eventually submerged into the sea.
• 🏠 Wittenoom, Australia was the largest contaminated site in the southern hemisphere due to blue asbestos mining, leading to its closure and abandonment.
• 🌊 The Aral Sea between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan shrank to a tenth of its original size due to water diversion for irrigation, causing environmental and economic devastation.
• 🔥 Centralia, Pennsylvania sits atop an underground fire that has been burning for over 60 years, leading to the town's evacuation and becoming a ghost town.
• 🏰 Nimrud, an ancient Assyrian city in Iraq, was destroyed by ISIS in 2014, erasing 3,000 years of history in a few months.
• 🌐 The Fukushima nuclear disaster in 2011 caused by an earthquake and tsunami led to a nuclear meltdown, evacuations, and long-term decontamination efforts.
• 🏙️ Pripyat, Ukraine, near the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, was evacuated in 1986 after a catastrophic meltdown, leaving it as a frozen piece of Soviet history.

Q & A

What was the main cause of the underground fire in Wittenoom, Western Australia?

The main cause of the underground fire in Wittenoom was the local officials' unwitting action back in May 1962, which led to a fire that has been burning ever since.

Why was Pitcher, Oklahoma included in the EPA's Tar Creek Superfund Site?

Pitcher, Oklahoma was included in the EPA's Tar Creek Superfund Site due to the extensive pollution from lead and zinc mining operations, which left toxic waste piles around the area, including in children's sandboxes.

What was the consequence of the mining operations in Gilman, Colorado?

The mining operations in Gilman, Colorado resulted in severe ecological damage, poisoning the soil and groundwater with arsenic, cadmium, copper, lead, and zinc, and ultimately led to the town being deemed uninhabitable and designated a Superfund site.

What historical significance did the Tomb of Mausolus at Halicarnassus hold?

The Tomb of Mausolus at Halicarnassus, built around 350 BC, was one of the Seven Ancient Wonders of the World and stood for hundreds of years until it was destroyed by earthquakes and later by Crusader Knights who used its stones to fortify their castle walls.

What event led to the evacuation of the town of Wittenoom?

The town of Wittenoom was evacuated due to the asbestos mining which caused thousands of workers and residents to suffer from rare and often fatal diseases such as mesothelioma.

How did the Aral Sea shrink to a tenth of its original size?

The Aral Sea shrank to a tenth of its original size due to the Soviet's water diversion projects from the 1930s, which were intended to irrigate cotton fields but led to significant water loss and a devastating reduction in the lake's size.

What was the cause of the perpetual fire beneath Centralia, Pennsylvania?

The perpetual fire beneath Centralia, Pennsylvania started in 1962 when an intentional blaze in the town's landfill smoldered and spread through an opening into a labyrinth of abandoned coal mines beneath the town.

What led to the destruction of the ancient city of Nimrud in Iraq?

The ancient city of Nimrud was destroyed in 2014 by the Islamic State forces who took sledgehammers and bulldozers to dismantle the buildings and attached barrels of explosives, annihilating 3,000 years of history.

What was the impact of the Fukushima nuclear disaster on the surrounding area?

The Fukushima nuclear disaster in 2011 caused a massive earthquake and tsunami, leading to a meltdown at the TEPCO Daiichi nuclear power plant, evacuation of hundreds of thousands of residents, and a significant economic impact on Japan.

Why was the city of Pripyat completely abandoned?

The city of Pripyat was completely abandoned following the Chernobyl nuclear disaster in 1986, which involved massive explosions and the release of radioactive dust into the atmosphere.

Outlines

00:00

🏚️ Abandoned Towns: Human and Natural Impacts

This paragraph introduces a series of locations around the world that have been abandoned or significantly altered due to human activities or natural events. It starts with the story of Witten, a ghost town in Western Australia, and moves on to discuss the environmental and health catastrophes of Pitcher, Oklahoma, known for its lead and zinc mining, which led to severe pollution and health issues, resulting in its designation as a Superfund site. The paragraph also touches on the historical loss of the Tomb of Mausolus in Turkey and the ecological disaster in Gilman, Colorado, where mining operations left a legacy of arsenic and heavy metal contamination.

05:01

🗺️ Disappearance of Towns and Landmarks

This section delves into the historical and environmental factors that led to the disappearance of various towns and landmarks. It discusses the collapse of the Lighthouse of Alexandria due to earthquakes, the devastation of the Aral Sea due to poor irrigation practices, and the tragic story of Centralia, Pennsylvania, where an underground fire has been burning for over 60 years due to a landfill fire spreading into coal mines. The paragraph also covers the destruction of the ancient city of Nimrud by ISIS and the Fukushima nuclear disaster in Japan, which led to mass evacuations and long-term environmental damage.

10:01

🌳 Chernobyl and the Resilience of Nature

The final paragraph focuses on the city of Pripyat, Ukraine, which was evacuated following the Chernobyl nuclear disaster in 1986. Once a thriving city, it now stands as a ghost town, with nature slowly reclaiming the area. The disaster's impact on the local environment and the challenges of decontamination and recovery are highlighted, showcasing the long-term effects of such a catastrophic event. The paragraph concludes with a reflection on the resilience of nature and the enduring legacy of human-made disasters.

Keywords

💡Ghost Town

A 'ghost town' refers to a place that was once inhabited but is now abandoned and in ruins. In the context of the video, it highlights the abandoned nature of the locations discussed, which have been deserted due to human activities or natural disasters. For instance, Witten in Western Australia and Pitcher, Oklahoma are mentioned as ghost towns resulting from mining activities and environmental pollution.

💡Environmental Disaster

An 'environmental disaster' is a catastrophic event causing extensive damage to the environment and ecosystems. The video script discusses several instances of environmental disasters, such as the contamination of Pitcher, Oklahoma due to mining waste and the ecological devastation around the Aral Sea due to water diversion for irrigation, which led to the shrinking of the lake and the collapse of local economies.

💡Superfund Site

A 'Superfund Site' is a designation given by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to polluted locations requiring a long-term response to clean up hazardous material contamination. The script mentions Pitcher, Oklahoma, and Gilman, Colorado as Superfund Sites, emphasizing the severe pollution levels that necessitated federal intervention for cleanup.

💡Mining

Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, often causing environmental impacts. The video script uses mining as a central theme, detailing how towns like Pitcher, Oklahoma and Gilman, Colorado were affected by mining activities, leading to soil and water contamination with toxic substances like lead, zinc, and arsenic.

💡Asbestos

Asbestos is a group of naturally occurring fibrous minerals that were widely used for their heat resistance and insulating properties. However, exposure to asbestos fibers can cause serious health issues, including mesothelioma. In the script, the town of Witten in Australia is mentioned as a site of asbestos mining, which led to the town's eventual closure and abandonment due to the health risks associated with asbestos.

💡Nuclear Disaster

A 'nuclear disaster' refers to a major accident at a nuclear power plant or a nuclear weapon facility, resulting in the release of radioactive materials. The video discusses the Chernobyl disaster in Ukraine and the Fukushima disaster in Japan, both of which led to mass evacuations, long-term health effects, and significant environmental contamination.

💡Meltdown

A 'meltdown' in the context of nuclear power refers to a severe nuclear reactor accident where the reactor core overheats, causing the fuel to melt. The script mentions the meltdown at the TEPCO Daiichi nuclear power plant in Fukushima and the Chernobyl power plant, both of which had devastating consequences for the surrounding areas and populations.

💡Contamination

Contamination is the presence of impurities or harmful substances in a material or environment. The video script describes various forms of contamination, such as the soil and groundwater contamination in Gilman, Colorado due to mining and the radioactive contamination in the aftermath of the Chernobyl and Fukushima disasters.

💡Evacuation

Evacuation is the organized removal of people from a dangerous location to a safer place. The script discusses mandatory evacuations in several towns, such as Pitcher, Oklahoma due to lead poisoning, and Pripyat, Ukraine following the Chernobyl disaster, highlighting the drastic measures taken to protect public health.

💡Historical Artifacts

Historical artifacts are objects made by humans that have historical significance and value. The video script mentions the destruction of Nimrud, an ancient Assyrian city in Iraq, where Islamic State forces destroyed historical artifacts and structures, erasing thousands of years of history.

💡Cultural Heritage

Cultural heritage refers to the legacy of physical artifacts, intangible attributes, and cultural expressions inherited from the past. The script discusses the deliberate destruction of cultural heritage sites like Nimrud and the Lighthouse of Alexandria, which were destroyed by natural disasters and human actions, respectively.

Highlights

Witten, a ghost town in Western Australia, is an example of a place significantly altered due to human activity or natural occurrences.

Pitcher, Oklahoma, once a leading producer of lead and zinc, became a Superfund site due to toxic waste and child lead poisoning.

The Tomb of Mausolus in Turkey was destroyed by earthquakes and later its stones were used to fortify castle walls.

Gilman, Colorado, suffered an ecological disaster due to mining operations that poisoned the soil and groundwater.

The Lighthouse of Alexandria in Egypt was damaged by earthquakes and eventually submerged into the sea.

Witten, Australia, was the site of the largest contaminated area in the southern hemisphere due to blue asbestos mining.

The Aral Sea between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan shrunk significantly due to Soviet water diversion projects for cotton fields.

Centralia, Pennsylvania, is atop a perpetual underground fire that has been burning for over 60 years.

Nimrud, an ancient Assyrian city, was destroyed by ISIS forces who considered it a place of false idols.

Fukushima, Japan, experienced a nuclear disaster in 2011, leading to the evacuation of towns and a massive cleanup effort.

Pripyat, Ukraine, was abandoned after the Chernobyl nuclear disaster in 1986, becoming a frozen piece of Soviet history.

The transcript highlights the lasting impact of human activity and natural disasters on various locations around the world.

Environmental negligence and lack of oversight have led to long-term consequences for the health of both people and ecosystems.

Cultural heritage sites have been irreversibly damaged by both natural disasters and human conflict.

The narrative of the transcript emphasizes the fragility of human settlements in the face of environmental and geological changes.

The transcript provides a cautionary tale about the importance of sustainable practices and respect for historical sites.

The aftermath of these disasters serves as a reminder of the need for better disaster preparedness and response strategies.

Transcripts

in the heart of Western Australia's

North lies a special but lethal place

the ghost town of Witten welcome to

watch Mojo and today we're counting down

our picks for locations on Earth that

have been abandoned significantly

altered or destroyed thanks to human

activity or natural occurrences it All

Began back in May

1962 when local officials unwittingly

sparked an underground

fire number 10 pitcher Oklahoma for half

a century the town of pitcher Oklahoma

was one of the United States's leading

producers of lead and zinc pitcher was

at the epicenter of the metal mining

boom becoming the largest exporter of

lead and zinc in the world as a result

of minimal oversight the mining

operations literally undermined the

foundations of the Town Toxic piles of

waste were left all over the area some

of which found its way into children's

sandboxes in 1983 the EPA included

pitcher as part of its massive Tar Creek

Superfund Site when mining stopped in

the70s the the Environmental Protection

Agency declared pitcher a superf fund

site a name given to areas so polluted

they're placed on the national priority

list for cleanup federal and state

efforts to mitigate the damage didn't

work and by 1994 onethird of pitcher's

children had led poisoning a mandatory

evacuation was put into effect with a

2008 tornado accelerating the town's

demise as of January 2011 only six homes

and one business remained the residents

too stubborn to leave even though the

town is gone the hometown is still here

everybody comes back to picture they was

born here or raised here or lived here

number nine tomb of mazus turkey over

the centuries each of the Seven Ancient

Wonders of the World with the notable

exception of the great pyramid at Giza

were lost to the sands of time one of

the lasts to fall was the melum at

halicarnassus or the tomb of mazus it

was built around 350 BC in modern-day

turkey the great tomb stood for hundreds

of years surviving both the invasion of

Alexander the great and two separate

pirate attacks by 1404 thanks to a

series of powerful earthquakes only the

base of the Tomb remained in 1494 an

order of Crusader Knights used the

stones of the Tomb to fortify their

castle walls number eight Gilman

Colorado once a booming zinc and Lead

mining town Gilman Colorado is now the

site of one of the worst ecological

disasters in US mining history the

mining operations poisoned the soil and

groundwater with arsenic cadmium copper

Le and zinc the Ecology of the nearby

Eagle River was decimated and the

residents of Gilman were horribly

exposed in 1984 the EPA deemed the town

uninhabitable and designated it a super

fund site the town was completely

evacuated and Abandoned and cleanup

efforts began some progress has been

made as one section of the area was

taken off the super fun list in 2023

Gilman however was never repopulated and

is now a ghost town number seven

Lighthouse of Alexandria Egypt King toy

the first first commissioned the

construction of the great Lighthouse at

Alexandria in the 3rd century bcee and

it was finished some Years Later by his

son built out of limestone and granite

it had a furnace at the top to provide

light to Sailors at Sea the lighthouse

stood for over a thousand years before

it was damaged by a series of

earthquakes after a powerful quake in

956 the lighthouse was repaired in

Muslim Style with a dome added to its

peak it would stand for a few hundred

years until two more earthquakes sent

the tower into the sea its remnants were

discovered at the bottom of the

Mediterranean in the 20th century number

six witan Australia the US isn't the

only nation that lost towns to mining

disasters the town of wit once sat 880

Mi Northeast of Perth Australia the

pilra town was built for asbestos Mine

Workers small scale mining was started

by Tycoon Lang Hancock in

1936 today it's the home to the largest

contaminated site in the southern

hemisphere blue asbest mining began in

the area in the 1930s culminating with

the construction of a company mining

town in

1947 the deadly mineral gave thousands

of workers and residents rare and often

fatal diseases such as mesothelioma

whitn was Australia's sole source of

blue asbest but by 1966 the mine stopped

being profitable and was shut down the

asbest induced health problems remained

in 2006 to 2007 the town's official

status was stripped and roads to

contaminated areas were closed we were

called to a town meeting we were told

that the government had decided that

they were going to close the town within

12 months and we would all have to leave

the town began its official closure in

2013 By 2022 the town's last two

residents departed number five Aral SE

between Kazakhstan and usbekistan for

most of recorded history the Aral Sea

was the fourth largest lake on Earth in

the 1930s the Soviets started diverting

water from from the Aral to irrigate

Cotton

Fields unfortunately the irrigation

projects weren't always sound with much

of the water getting lost by the 1960s

water diversion projects caused the lake

to shrink so

then

its reduction absolutely devastated the

local fishing economy destroying many

towns situated on its Shores by 2007 the

sea was a tenth of its original

size today the former Eastern Basin is

known as the aalum desert the region is

terribly polluted causing massive public

health issues former Secretary General

of the UN called the shrinking of the

Aral quote one of the planet's worst

environmental disasters number four

Centralia Pennsylvania Centralia

Pennsylvania once a sleepy coal town now

sits at top a Perpetual conflagration in

1962 as one story goes an attempt to

clean the town's landfill led to an

intentional Blaze they did what they did

you know they let it burn thought it was

out but it was smoldering down in the

lower depths of the garbage and the fire

spread from the garbage through an

opening in the pit that went into this

Labyrinth of abandoned coal mines

beneath the town the fire unfortunately

spread to abandoned coal shafts beneath

the town and have continued to burn for

over 60 years even still it took three

decades for the town to fully evacuate

by the late '70s having failed to

prevent the fire from spreading closer

to the town residents were warned that

Centralia was unsafe but most people

stayed put the state bought all the real

estate in the area in 1992 using eminent

domain statutes and it was all condemned

in 2013 seven residents remained they

were allowed to remain until their

deaths at which point the rights to

their land would revert to the

government it was Centralia it was just

a finally a matter of money what's going

to cost more to dig this huge barrier

and and surround the coal and just buy

everybody out and so they decided to buy

everybody out today Centralia is a ghost

town seemingly perched above a fiery

gateway to Hell number three nimrud Iraq

nimrud was an ancient Assyrian City in

Upper Mesopotamia founded over 3,000

years ago long after the fall of ancient

Assyria the ruins of the city stood in

the 1840s archaeologists began

Excavating the city discovering statues

palaces temples and a great zigurat back

in 2001 Nimrod attracted archaeologists

from around the world the cuniform

inscriptions here are some of the

earliest examples of writing anywhere

unfortunately the city sits in

modern-day Iraq and in 2014 the Islamic

State forces surrounded the ancient city

taking sledgehammers and bulldozers they

dismantle the

building finally attaching barrels of

explosives and

then it all goes up in a cloud of dust

as part of their campaign to destroy any

relics or historical artifacts deemed

unislim or idolatrous they blew up or

bulldozed the entire area the forces

destroyed 90% of the excavated City

annihilating 3,000 years of history in

just a few months for the Isis militants

this site was not something to be

cherished for its huge historical and

archaeological significance instead in

their Ultra extremist view this was was

a place of false idols and therefore to

be eradicated number two Fukushima Japan

in 2011 Fukushima prefecture in Japan

was hit by a massive earthquake

unfortunately Fukushima was home to a

nuclear power plant which suffered

tremendous damage during the earthquake

it caused a tsunami which killed more

than 15,000 people and led to a meltdown

at TECO daichi nuclear power

plant whole towns were washed off the

map leaving nothing

behind several reactors melted down

causing the first level seven nuclear

disaster since Chernobyl and one of the

worst disasters to strike Japan since

Nagasaki the containment effort was

frantic and hundreds of thousands of

residents were temporarily evacuated

public confidence in nuclear power

collapsed no

morea the triple disaster of the

earthquake tsunami and nuclear fallouts

made a huge dent in the Japanese economy

a large exclusion Zone was created in

the area in the Dozen Years After the

disaster parts of the evacuation order

were lifted bit by bit but many towns

which have lifted evacuation are still

struggling with

decontamination upwards of 5,000 workers

are here every day innovating and

orchestrating the most complicated

expensive nuclear Cleanup in history

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notifications number one pripet Ukraine

founded in 1970 pripet Ukraine was a

Boom Town of almost 50,000 by the end of

1985 it had over a dozen schools a mega

Hospital campus stores Cinemas

restaurants even an amusement park a

year later it was completely abandoned

this is the city of pripiat 2 miles from

the reactor they 30 years ago the

population was 50,000 today it is zero

pipot was the closest town to the number

four reactor at the Chernobyl nuclear

power plant which suffered a horrific

meltdown in 1986 the disaster was

sparked by massive explosions that tore

the roof off of chernobyl's reactor

number four spewing radioactive dust

into the atmosphere the entire town was

swiftly evacuated it's a piece of Soviet

history Frozen in Time literally all the

clocks are stopped at 11:55 the precise

moment that the power was cut today

Nature has reclaimed Prat with deer elk

moose boar and others returned to the

area the nuclear disaster is never over

there will be areas that will be

contaminated for thousands if not

millions of years are there other sites

of terrible disasters evacuated from our

list let us know in the comments below

it's hard to imagine just 40 years ago

this was a buling fishing port did you

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