Dyatlov Pass: mysterious case of death of skiers in the USSR remains unsolved

The Dyatlov Pass Case is one of the most disturbing mysteries in modern history. On February 1, 1959, a group of ten Russian skiers, led by Igor Dyatlov, embarked on an expedition into the Ural Mountains, in what was then the Soviet Union. However, what began as an adventure quickly turned into an inexplicable tragedy.

Mysterious circumstances

A few days into the expedition, one of the skiers returned for medical reasons, but the other nine continued along their route. They had planned to send a message back to their sports club about three weeks after leaving. So when February 20th came and there was no news from them, a search team set out to find them.

Over the next few weeks, the team found the bodies of the first five skiers scattered across the snow. Some were half-naked and had bizarre injuries. One of them had burns on his body and apparently bit off part of his own finger.

Months later, after the snow melted, investigators discovered the bodies of the other four hikers. They had even more inexplicable injuries. One had a fractured skull, another had a twisted neck, two were missing their eyes and one of the bodies without eyes was also missing its tongue. Additionally, there was evidence of radiation on some clothing.

Theories about what happened that fateful night vary greatly. Some speculations include avalanche, wild animal attack, confrontation with local people, unusual natural phenomena and even involvement of military, extraterrestrials or Yetis (or Bigfoot).

Despite decades of investigations, official reports and conspiracy theories, The mystery of the Dyatlov Pass Case remains unsolved. A recent investigation indicated that the possible cause of the tragedy was a succession of avalanches. The mutilations could have been caused by scavenging animals that fed on the bodies after the deaths.

Victims of the Dyatlov Pass Case:

Igor Alekseyevich Dyatlov
Yuri Nikolayevich Doroshenko
Lyudmila Alexandrovna Dubinina
Yuri (Georgiy) Alexeyevich Krivonischenko
Alexander Sergeyevich Kolevatov
Zinaida Alekseevna Kolmogorova
Rustem Vladimirovich Slobodin
Nikolai Vladimirovich Thibeaux-Brignolles
Semyon (Alexander) Alekseevich Zolotaryov