SCARIEST Abandoned Places in Europe

From entire towns that were abandoned in a matter of days to eerie forts in the middle of the ocean here’s some of the scariest places in Europe that have, for one reason or another, been permanently deserted by humans.

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7. Skrunda 1

During the Cold War the Soviets erected a number of secret cities that were constructed for various military reasons. Skrunda 1 in Latvia is a prime example of one of these communities kept under locks. Built in 1963 it was once a base home to 5,000 personnel. The site’s goal was to look for incoming missiles from Western Europe using its two giant radar installations. Dozens of buildings used to comprise Skrunda 1 including a school, barracks and factories. The Soviets were asked to leave in 1994 with a 4 year grace period. When they finally vacated in 1998 the Latvians tore down one of the radar towers in celebration of the Soviets leaving. The rest of the base was left to be picked apart for scraps and decay.

6. Craco

Found on a map at the instep of Italy’s boot, Craco has become a popular tourist attraction due to it's spooky abandoned state. The town had been inhabited for thousands of years starting, apparently, with the Greeks. Finally, a landslide that can likely be attributed to the installation of infrastructure like sewage and water systems forced the residents to relocate in the 1960’s. Thanks to it's unique, awe inspiring appearance the site has appeared in several movies including the Passion of the Christ and Quantum of Solace.

5. Kopachi

This small village is located near the aforementioned Chernobyl. The village was contaminated by fallout from the Chernobyl disaster in 1986 and was subsequently abandoned. Due to fear that if the buildings were lit on fire then more radioactive isotopes would be released into the atmosphere, the government decided to bulldoze the structures and bury them directly in front of where they stood. Today only a few buildings, like a former kindergarten remain along with a series of mounds.

4. Reschen (res chen)

If you didn’t know why Reschen was ultimately abandoned and you walked up to it, you might chuckle. That’s because the town is currently, and has been for years, under Lake Reschen and all that’s visible is a steeple from a submerged 14th century church. Despite resistance from residence a dam was created, causing the formation of the lake in 1950. Angry, sullen residence left, and a total of 163 homes and nearly 1300 acres of cultivated land were submerged. Today the lake is famous for that old steeple, which can be reached on foot when the lake freezes over in the winter time.

3. Chatterley Whitfield Colliery (kol yuh ree)

This abandoned coal mine sits on the outskirts of an area in England known as Stoke-on-Trent. In it's heyday it became the first colliery in the United Kingdom to produce one million tons of saleable coal in a single year. It was also the site of the 1881 Pit Disaster, during which a serious fire and explosion would result in the loss of 24 lives. After it stopped producing coal it was used as a popular underground museum before that closed for good in 1993.

2. Teufelsberg

Teufelsberg, German for Devil's Mountain is a manmade hill in Berlin, or what was formerly West Berlin. The Nazi’s started building a military technical college on the land that the hill now occupies. The Allies subsequently tried to demolish the building during World War 2, however, the school was so sturdy that they decided it would be easier to cover it with debris instead. During the Cold War the United States National Security Agency built a listening station on the hill which is what those big, ugly white bulbs are. Today the hill is 394 feet high and still covers the remains of that old Nazi school. Meanwhile the radio tower is, as you can see, abandoned and out of use besides being taken advantage of occasionally as a filming location.

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1. Hartwood Mental Hospital

Though it may look like a giant castle, this is Hartwood Mental Hospital. Found in North Lanarkshire, Scotland, Hartwood first opened it's doors to patients in the 1890’s. The psychiatric hospital was completely self sustaining, with it's own farm, gardens, cemetery, railway line, and power plant. It was a popular and often overcrowded hospital throughout its history until more modern psychiatric therapies and care techniques led to it's closure in the late 1990’s. Today the crumbling building and it's imposing twin clock towers are a sought after site for urban explorers.

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