There is an abandoned town that was once home to 50,000, but it emptied overnight after a horrendous, life-threatening disaster. Dark tourism has become popular over the last few years, with people visiting places where a disaster, war or other kind of horrendous event might have happened. One of the areas that is on people’s dark tourism bucket list is a place called Pripyat. This town is located in the north of Ukraine, close to the country’s border with Belarus.
Interestingly, the city wasn’t occupied for very long. It was founded in the 1970s and mainly housed workers at the Chernobyl nuclear plant. Following the infamous disaster, it was evacuated straight away. By April 27, 1986 (the day after the disaster), there were no residents left. It is located in the Chernobyl exclusion zone, which means it is highly contaminated, and visiting the area is strictly limited. Since Russia began its war in Ukraine in 2022, part of the region is now under Russian occupation. The town looks like something from an apocalyptic movie, with remnants of commercial buildings, apartments, and amusement parks sitting amongst the rubble.