The Dyatlov Pass Incident: A Tragic Mystery in the Ural Mountains
In February 1959, a group of ten experienced ski hikers perished under baffling circumstances in the northern Ural Mountains.The incident, now known as the Dyatlov Pass incident, continues to intrigue adn puzzle investigators decades later.
The group, led by 23-year-old Igor Dyatlov, comprised students from the ural Polytechnic Institute. Among them was Semyon Zolotaryov, a 38-year-old sports instructor and veteran of World War Two. They began their journey on January 23rd, travelling by sleeper train from Sverdlovsk to Vizhay, a quite settlement. On January 25th, they hitched a ride on a truck to the 41st logging settlement, before continuing the final 15 miles to the abandoned North-2 mining settlement via horse-drawn sled.
It was at this point that Yura Yudin, one of the group, decided to turn back - a decision that ultimately saved his life. The remaining nine students pressed on towards their goal: Mount Ortorten. The mountain’s name, given by the indigenous Mansi people, carries an ominous meaning in their language: “Don’t Go There.” The area also held a dark history as the site of a notorious Soviet prison camp (gulag), known for its brutality.
The group skied along the Auspiya River before making camp on the eastern slope of Kholat syakhyl, digging a shallow pit to pitch their tent. After this point, all contact with the group was lost.
A search party was dispatched when the students failed to report back on schedule. On February 27th, rescuers, including Mikhail Sharavin, made the grim discovery of the bodies. Sharavin, recalling the scene in a 2019 interview with the BBC, stated: “We approached a cedar tree and when we were 20 metres away, we saw a brown spot – it was towards the right of the trunk. and when we got closer we saw two corpses lying there. The hands and the feet were reddish-brown.”
The frist two bodies identified were those of Yura Doroshenko and Yuri Krivonischenko. Both were found stripped to their underwear, and Krivonischenko had bitten off a piece of his own knuckle. Igor Dyatlov was discovered next, dressed but shoeless and lying face down in the snow. Zinaida Kolmogorova was found nearby, her body positioned as if she had been desperately attempting to crawl uphill towards the tent. She bore a notable bruise on the right side of her torso, resembling a blow from a baton.
Initial suspicions fell upon the Mansi people,though members of the community consistently denied any involvement. Other theories ranged from military experiments to a more sinister, unknown cause.
However,a plausible description has been proposed by Swiss scientists Alexander Puzrin and Johan Gaume.They suggest the group was likely killed by a rare “slab avalanche.” According to Puzrin, “If they hadn’t made a cut in the slope, nothing would have happened.that was the initial trigger, but that alone wouldn’t have been enough.” He further explained that katabatic winds likely contributed to snow accumulation, creating a dangerous situation. ”At a certain point, a crack could have formed and spread, causing the snow slab to release.”
The scientists theorize that the falling snow caused trauma to some hikers, forcing the others to flee the tent inadequately clothed and ultimately succumb to hypothermia.
