Here are probably the MOST dangerous places on Earth!
10 - Yungas Road
It may no longer be the world's most dangerous road, but for a good while, hundreds of Bolivians
lost their lives on this road because of its steep inclines, narrow winding curves AND
a 1000 meter-tall cliff that drivers tried to avoid.
With all this risk, who would consider driving on this road?!
For a while, there wasn't any other option.
The famously named 'Breath Road' is a gravel path between the cities of La Paz and Coroico.
Climbing more than 4,500 meters above sea level, this road was a common trap located
in the Bolivian region of Yungas.
An average of 250 people lost their lives each year falling from the vertical cliff
surrounding the mountain that the road borders.
The road is barely the width of a normal vehicle, with no guardrail or protection.
The routine rainfall that happens also severely reduces visibility, as it creates a dense
fog AND turns the road into a muddy mess.
Also, because of its incline, the road is the only road in Bolivia where drivers use
the left lane, as it provides better view for the harsh curves that elevate almost endlessly.
Let’s not forget the risk for a landslide, but all that still hasn't stopped adventurous
risk-takers from grabbing a bike tour on this road.
Apparently, many well-experienced drivers pray before they take this road, something
that I’d say couldn’t hurt!
9 - Valley of Breath Its extension might not be large, but it's
as readily as it can get.
Located in the Kamchatcka peninsula in southwest Russia, this volcanic valley is known for
grilling thousands of animals yearly.
With a natural combination of toxic gases such as carbon dioxide, hydrogen sulphide
and carbon sulphur, it's no surprise that all animals that enter the area are found
red within days.
During springtime, when birds overfly the zone and fly, a natural chain reaction is
formed: foxes and other predators come to the area attracted by the smell of the birds,
followed by wolverines and bears.
Although animals fly rapidly, their bodies don’t break down at the same speed– the
toxic air doesn't allow for bacteria to disintegrate the body for a long time.
But why is it so bad around here?!
The composition of the land.
Toxic gases are located within the lower layer of the soil, emanating upwards and creating
a hazardous chemical reaction when in contact with the oxygen in the air.
This is a naturally lethal environment with an extension of only less than one and a half
miles.
Small, but very powerful…...
8 - Lake Kivu The contradictions surrounding this Central-African
lake are many: it has the potential to generate a new source of energy that would significantly
boost the economy of the region, while also being a possibly lethal hazard to the 2 million
people that live around its shores.
Dividing the frontiers between the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda, Lake Kivu is
known to be filled with methane gas, making an explosion a very strong outcome.
Its dangerous side comes with a silver-lining: if the methane is properly extracted, it could
create a new electricity source to power up a nation like Rwanda, where almost 80% of
the population lives without it.
This possibility, discovered in 1984 by investigators from the University of Rhode Island, has become
a beacon of hope for Rwanda's future.
But they gotta act fast.
The lake is located next to a chain of volcanoes whose springs pour carbon dioxide daily into
the water, so the prospect of a major explosion is imminent.
The constant water pressure above can cause the gas to burst from the bottom and create
a deadly white fog that would poison everything on its way.
7 - Darvaza Gas Crater In 1971, Soviet engineers discovered a site
that could potentially become one of the biggest dangers for the country: a gas field in the
middle of the desert.
Located in what now is Turkmenistan, this cavern is known to be the ONLY man-made gas
reserve in the world!
To avoid potential danger, they decided to set fire to the field, igniting a flame SO
powerful, the whole ground around it collapsed and created a crater!
Scientists thought that by burning off the gas, they could avoid any future explosions
that would affect the surrounding villages.
After all, the fire was supposed to burn out in a couple of weeks.
Wellllllllllllll, it’s been burning non-stop for more than 40 years.
Not only has this accidental rift become a natural site for the Turkmenistan landscape,
but a tourist phenomenon– more than 50,000 travelers visit the ground crevice annually,
even setting up a camping ground in the Karakum desert, where the crater lies.
6 - Ilha da Queimada Grande Snakes are known to be some of the scariest
and deadliest animals in the world.
So, how about a visit to a whole island just FILLED with them?
Properly nicknamed as 'Snake Island', this Brazilian island located a few miles off the
coast of Sao Paulo, serves as the only refuge in all the world for the insularis snake.
Having been the perpetrator of 90% of all snake bites in the American continent, these
snakes aren’t to be messed with!
Their poison is so toxic it burns the victim's skin and neighboring tissues, causing hemorrhages
and kidney failure within an hour.
Entering the island is strictly prohibited by the Brazilian government; very few brave
researchers have managed to see it in person.
When the sea level rose11 thousand years ago, the land became separate from the continent.
Most of the snakes started reproducing endlessly without any predators threatening them.
Since then, many horror stories have come to existence because of the island's popularity.
Considering the ratio of snakes is 5 per square meter, it's understandable why this place
is one of the last places anyone would wanna be on earth!
5 - Aokigahara Forest Two hours southwest of Tokyo exists one of
the most popular two a side destinations in the world.
Second only to the Golden Gate Bridge, this deep forest has garnered a popularity beyond
life itself– the number of people who enter without coming out has increased yearly since
2003.
Efforts made by the local police have proven to be futile.
The numerous signs with thoughtful phrases such as quote “Your life is a precious gift
from your parents” hasn’t stopped the number of people who’ve been found annually
within its 'sea of trees' from rising.
Many have blamed the economic fall of Japan for being the driving force behind this wave,
but others point to the popularity of Seicho Matsumoto's novel Kuroi Jukai, in which its
two main characters drive off to this forest to end their lives.
As expected, legends around its enigma are grim; people say the spirits of the dead remain
lingering in the forest and have managed to create a paranormal campground from which
visitors won't be able to escape.
Adventurous trekkers also need to be very cautious: the soil in the area is volcanic
and rich in magnetic iron, causing compasses to become worthless.
How's that for a worst-case scenario?
4 - Danakil Desert The landscape is rough in this northern Ethiopia
desert.
Considered the driest place in the world, as there’s only anywhere between 100 to
200 millimeters of rain yearly, this alien-like scenery stands in the Afar Junction, a region
where three tectonic plates meet.
The technical term used to describe it is a rift valley, where the plates are moving
away 1 or 2 centimeters per year.
Investigators noted that because of the regular movement of the plates, at one point in the
very distant future, the land is going to make way for the Red Sea to increase its level,
creating a new ocean.
As if it that weren't enough, the whole area is filled with lava lakes, never-ending cracks
on the soil, and even sweltering hot springs.
Hmmm, sounds like a perfect scene for an alien invasion movie.
Getting here is no piece of cake: travelers have to endure driving through a long and
bumpy dusty road for hours to descend into the Ethiopian lowland.
Given the extreme temperatures and uninhabitable conditions, you would expect this area to
be empty.
To the surprise of many, the Afar people have ACTUALLY found a way to call this their home–
their bodies have gotten used to the weather and even the lack of water.
With the extensive amount of salt deposits present in the desert, they’ve found a way
to make salt a precious commodity in their economy.
3 - Madidi National Park Expanding almost seventy-hundred square miles,
this South American natural treasure with its extensive tropical fauna and flora is
world-renowned for its changing climate and conditions.
Officially certified as a national park by the Bolivian government in 1995, Madidi is
part of one of the largest protected areas in the world.
Despite its popularity for being a ground of constant biological investigation, it still
hasn’t changed a fact about its reality: it’s a raw and dangerous site when explored
without proper care.
Jaguars, pumas and even bears make up its ever-growing population of predators.
The lack of stability in its weather makes for another challenge– during the rainy
season from November to March, the tropical lowlands can reach anywhere between 77 to
92 degrees fahrenheit, with constant and suffocating humidity.
During June and July, strange arctic winds can appear, lowering temperatures to as low
as 41 degrees, making weather unpredictable in this rainforest park that receives heavy
rainfall yearly.
Muddy paths make up most of the roads leading to the park, and the closest town is several
miles, separated by the Beni river.
2 - Bikini Atoll For more than sixty years, locals from the
Marshall Islands have been trying to put behind a toxic event that to this day still haunts
them.
For twelve years, the U.S. Military used the grounds on the Bikini Atoll –part of this
South Pacific archipelago– as a test for nuclear weapons.
But on March 1st 1954, the explosion was so severe, that natives were forced to evacuate
and leave everything behind because of the impending risk of exposure to radioactive
waste.
A thousand times more destructive than the Hiroshima bomb, this nuclear test has proven
to be almost permanent: in 1978, two years after they were permitted entry back onto
the islands, locals had to be removed again because of ingesting high levels of radioactive
remains on foods that were grown in the soil.
Although the U.S. government has created projects to clean up the nuclear mess, islanders have
lived in a state of constant exile, moving back and forth after being promised their
homes were secure and clean.
A 2012 report from the United Nations Human Rights Council stated how the environmental
devastation was irreversible and had forced many people to live in permanent displacement.
Currently only 3 out of the 40 islands in the atoll are considered suitable for human
presence.
1 - Pluto’s Gate to Bell The entrance to bell exists and it’s closer
than you think.
Filled with toxic gases, this cave located in southwestern Turkey has ALL the mystery
a horror story needs.
Although it sounds like a made-up location from a superhero movie, scientists explain
how this is a natural phenomenon.
The emission of deadly gases in this former pilgrim site has gained worldwide attention.
During an excavation in the city of Hierapolis in March 2013, archaeologists experienced
the deathly properties of the cave in front of them.
Birds flying in close proximity to it would rapidly fly because of the carbon dioxide
fumes rising up from its interior.
As it was once known worldwide as the 'portal to bell' by many intellectuals such as Cicero
and Strabus, its popularity has now been confirmed by modern day researchers who can attest to
its lethal capacity.
Here’s what’s next!