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VAROSHA, CYPRUS
In the early 1970s, Varosha beaches in Cyprus were the place to be if you’re a millionaire or a celebrity. All that changed when Turkey invaded Cyprus in 1974 and occupied its northern third. This event forced over 15,000 residents to evacuate and leave their homes. Another war crime caused people to be left without their homes. Varosha is now frozen in time, with forty-year-old cars still parked and shop windows full of 1970s fashion.
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CENTRALIA, USA
Have you heard about the place where underground fires burn since 1962? Centralia used to be a mining town in Pennsylvania. The mine fire scared away Centralia’s residents. Most of them never came back. There are about ten people still living there, but Centralia’s mostly a ghost town. No one wants to live in a place where it’s always burning under their feet.
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TIMES BEACH, MISSOURI
Times Beach Missouri is the location of one of America’s worst pollution disasters. During the 1970s, the city had waste oil sprayed on the unpaved roads to reduce the amount of dust that was lifting. This wouldn’t be a problem if the oil didn’t contain dioxin, a toxic carcinogen. The dioxin entered the soil and was washed all over the city with floods. Once again, man’s stupidity caused serious health problems. The city’s been reborn as Route 66 State park after enormous cleanup efforts.
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TYNEHAM, ENGLAND
When World War 2 knocked on England’s door, the Ministry of Defence took over the town of Tyneham and used it as an army base. Citizens were promised their homes back once the war is over. That promise was never kept. Time’s frozen in Tyneham. There are still school works lying on the tables and a note left on the town’s church to take care of their parish. Tyneham’s now a ruin, used and rejected once the war was over.