In 1959, a group of nine young hikers trudged through the snowy Ural Mountains in Russia aiming to reach the peak locally known as the "Dead Mountain". The hikers pitched their tents at the base of a small slope where an intensifying blizzard chilled the night air to -19 degrees Fahrenheit (-25 degrees Celsius). Unfortunately, the travelers never made it to their next waypoint.
It took almost a month for investigators to find all nine bodies scattered in snow, trees, and ravines of Dead Mountain. The lead Soviet investigator at the time closed the criminal case into the hikers' deaths, concluding that an "overwhelming force" drove them from the tent. However, the specific details of the compelling force behind the now-infamous "Dyatlov Pass incident" have long remained a mystery. The story has given rise to several theories which try to explain the events that happened that night.
The Mansi Theory
Soviet authorities initially theorized that the Dyatlov party may have been killed by the Mansi, a group of indigenous people inhabiting the region. It was believed that the hikers were slaughtered for straying onto sacred land, or maybe as part of a shamanic ritual.
This theory was debunked since it was rooted in a misunderstanding of Mansi culture and rituals. It also does not explain why the dead bodies were found in different locations, with some more injured than others.
The Espionage Theory
Two hikers from the Dyatlov group have been the focus of particular speculation. This group of young students and graduates include a 37-year-old World War II veteran named Semyon Zolotaryov. They also include Yuri Krivonischenko who helped clear up a radioactive leak at a secret Soviet nuclear facility.
The Espionage theory suggests that Zolotaryov and Krivonischenko worked for the KGB and had joined the Dyatlov trek to secretly meet with CIA agents in the Ural Mountains. While handing over radioactive materials and fake nuclear secrets, the Russians were supposed to take photos of the American men. The theory goes that the CIA agents got wise to what was going on, and a fight broke out between them which led to the massacre of the Dyatlov party.
The Slab Avalanche Theory
The most widely accepted theory is the Slab Avalanche theory which suggests that the group left their tent because of a slab avalanche, then succumbed to the harsh conditions. A slab avalanche refers to an area where a compacted block of snow slides down a slope as the underlying, weaker snow layer gives way.
This theory explains that a combination of factors, like mountain winds called katabatic winds and a weakening of the mountain snow during tent pitching, led to the catastrophic event. Once the avalanche hit, the hikers slashed their way out of the tent in a panic where some of them got severely injured by the impact. The others managed to escape with mild cuts and abrasions, and helped others flee the assumed danger zone for a full-scale avalanche. In the end, the whole group perished from the intense cold or their injuries.
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