Lake of Death Kills More Than 1,700 People in Just One Day

In just one day, more than 1,700 residents died and four villages around Lake Nyos in Cameroon were wiped out in the strangest and rarest CO2 eruption in history.

Lake Nyos in northwestern Cameroon is associated with a legend of an evil spirit emerging from the lake and killing people living nearby, according to Disclose TV. However, this legend originated from a real event that claimed the lives of more than 1,700 local residents.

Lake Nyos formed in a volcanic crater 400 years ago. Crater lakes typically contain high concentrations of CO2 due to volcanic activity occurring kilometers below. Under normal conditions, the CO2 evaporates over time as the lake is replenished by rainfall.

But Lake Nyos exists differently. It is a remarkably still lake, with little impact from environmental changes. Instead of releasing CO2, the lake acts as a high-pressure gas reservoir. The water below accumulates more and more gas until every liter of water dissolves more than 5 liters of CO2. The pressure is so extreme that Lake Nyos is a ticking time bomb.

On August 21, 1986, a seismic event called the CO2 Blowout occurred. It could have been caused by a landslide, a small volcanic eruption, or a rainstorm at the edge of the lake. Regardless, the consequences were catastrophic. The lake exploded, sending a fountain of water 300 feet into the air and causing a small tsunami. But it was the CO2 gas that killed nearly 2,000 people that was released.

About 1.2 cubic kilometers of CO2 gas were released in 20 seconds. The huge CO2 cloud swept across the countryside. The villages around the lake had little chance of survival. Of the 800 residents, only 6 were lucky enough to escape the disaster by quickly running to higher ground on motorbikes. As the CO2 cloud enveloped the area, all fires were extinguished. A gloomy atmosphere spread around Lake Nyos.

The cloud spread far and wide, killing people as far as 25 kilometers from the lake. Villagers in the area who came out to investigate the noise they heard were suffocated by the incoming cloud and died on their doorsteps. People who had been napping also died before their loved ones knew what was happening, because the concentration of CO2 at ground level was high enough to be lethal.

"I couldn't speak. I fell into a state of unconsciousness. I couldn't open my mouth because then I smelled something very unpleasant. I heard my daughter snoring abnormally. When I reached her bed, I collapsed. I wanted to speak but I couldn't breathe. My daughter was dead," Joseph Nkwain, one of the survivors of the CO2 eruption, recounted.

In total, 1,746 people died in the disaster. The villages of Nyos, Kam, Cha, and Subum had no survivors. More than 3,500 livestock were wiped out in minutes. Lake Nyos turned from blue to deep red, a change caused by iron being stirred up from the lake bed.

After the event, Lake Nyos was placed under official supervision. A pipe installed at the bottom of the lake is allowing the CO2 to escape at its normal rate. However, this method of releasing the gas may not be enough. The lake is now again containing higher CO2 concentrations than in 1986, and a natural dam above the lake is in danger of collapsing. This could cause a double disaster of flooding and gas suffocation.

According to VNE