Russia’s frozen ice towns

Drone footage captures the beautifully eerie Russian district of Vorkuta, lost under a blanket of snow. Extreme weather conditions have made most of the district’s towns uninhabitable. Ex-residents are attempting to sell their properties for a pittance, having left for Vorkuta city or for ‘the South’, as the territory on the other side of the polar circle is known. The population of the settlements started dwindling after the collapse of the USSR when ironworks facilities were closed and people started moving away. Between 5,000 and 20,000 people used to live in eight small towns situated near the coal mines. A bus once connected the settlements to each other and the city, but it is no longer in service due to the severe weather. Follow us on Telegram /