Vorkuta. Immersion. Photobook. 4K / Воркута. Погружение. Фотокнига. 4K

Vorkuta is a city in the far north-east of the European part of Russia. This harsh region, located just 140 kilometers from the Arctic Ocean, is poorly adapted for human life. Endless tundra, permafrost zone. Previously, only Nenets reindeer herders leading a nomadic lifestyle could be found here. Everything has changed since the discovery of a large coal deposit in these places. In 1932, the first batch of Gulag prisoners arrived here, and their labor was subsequently widely used in mines. In 1943, numerous villages around coal mines were transformed into a city. Civilians from all over the USSR began to come here for high salaries. At the peak of economic development, about 117 thousand people lived in Vorkuta. In addition to the mines, there were industrial enterprises, schools, hospitals and cultural institutions functioning in the city. After the collapse of the Soviet Union and the crisis in the coal industry, residents started leaving the city looking for jobs and better places to live in. Within 30 y