get phree!

The Dyatlov Pass Accident refers to an incident that resulted in the death of nine ski hikers in the northern Ural mountains. The incident happened on the night of February 2, 1959.

“The mysterious circumstances of the hikers’ deaths have inspired much speculation. Investigations of the deaths suggest that the hikers tore open their tent from within, departing barefoot in heavy snow; while the corpses show no signs of struggle, one victim had a fractured skull, two had broken ribs, and one was missing her tongue. The victims’ clothing contained high levels of radiation.Soviet investigators determined only that “a compelling unknown force” had caused the deaths, barring entry to the area for years thereafter.The causes of the accident remain unclear.”

Reading the account of where the bodies were found reminded me of the scene in Tremors where they all run from the dynamite in a panic and wind up scattered all over the desert.

The terrifying thing about this mystery is that the “compelling force” is probably something that made complete sense to the hikers. I’m pretty sure they set up camp in the middle of a weapons testing zone and abruptly discovered their mistake while sleeping. The missing tongue could have been part of a radiation exposure test, and cracked bones a result of haphazardly running around in a snowstorm.  Kevin Bacon helped me solve this one.

I found a good collection of pictures from the film found at the campsite.