Lake Nyos (Nyos) is a crater lake in the Republic of Cameroon. This alpine lake (1090 m above sea level) was formed in the 16th century due to a hydrothermal explosion (when lava met with groundwater). The dimensions of the lake are 1400 m long and 900 m wide, depth 209 m.
The mystery of Lake Nyos
A man named Mohammed Musa Abdulahi from Cameroon once woke up not in a very good mood, he felt unwell in his body. Mohammed decided to lie down at school and then head home. After a little rest, the Cameroonian wandered home, there was perfect silence around the man. The impression was that the settlement, called Subuma, had completely died out.
But suddenly his gaze fell to the ground, what he saw plunged the man into horror. The road was littered with corpses, they were also in the courtyards of private houses. The impression was that people died literally on the go, or while talking with neighbors. Not only the inhabitants of Subum were dead, but also livestock, domestic animals and birds.
In 1986, under strange circumstances, 1,700 people died, his fellow tribesmen, as well as 11 relatives of the Cameroonian. He was lucky enough to stay alive only because he was in the premises of an educational institution, in a closed office.
The tragedy took place on the shores of Lake Nios, a very beautiful reservoir with a picturesque landscape around. The lake itself, despite its beauty, is a crater of an active volcano in ancient times. The last eruption of this volcano was recorded in the 16th century. After that, a magma plug formed at the bottom of the lake, which was compressed under the influence of the liquid. In 95 kilometers from Nios there is a lake with a similar history of origin - Monoun. The main feature of these two bodies of water is that they can explode every minute.
Promotional video:
Under the plug, the action of volcanic activity is actively continuing: through the pores in the igneous rock, carbon dioxide comes out into the water. This gas is constantly accumulating in deep waters, dormant until the moment of its activation comes.
From the slightest earthquake, landslide or sudden change in weather conditions (cooling), carbon dioxide, together with water, rushes out to the sky in the form of a fountain.
Then the gas is dispersed in the atmosphere, distilled by air currents and strangles all life in its path. This is what caused the death of the tribesmen of Mohammed Musa Abdulahi.
Monone also exploded, killing 37 people. Many of the old-timers began to claim that people die by supernatural obsession.
Also, many residents of the nearby villages began to talk about the fact that the Americans were testing new nuclear weapons on the lake, from there and such a huge number of victims.
Researchers have suggested that a pipe should be lowered to the bottom of the deadly lake, through which the gas would go out constantly. This method has proven to be effective.