The Warning Went Unheeded - Yungay Tragedy - Peru 1970

May 1970 - the seemingly idyllic town of Yungay was literally wiped off the map - along with the 25,000 people who were there.... It's a tragedy almost beyond belief, and it had been predicted eight years previously....
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Although focused primarily on disasters, this channel is all about the interesting, the strange, the unsolved, the tragic. Our world has a varied history full of terrible tragedies, bizarre tales, unexplained events, and extravagant people. I hope you enjoy some of the fascinating stories we have here.
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[@andrewkelley9405]

"disrupting public tranquility" sounds like a 1984 dystopian excuse. I feel bad for the people of Yungay, but for nobody in the Peruvian government.

[@brianrigsby7900]

Disgusting! They only cared about their image!

[@Destilight]

Well it was a dictatorship at the time. Much like the rest of south america.

[@l337ath3ist]

Disrupting public tranquility seems like like a fancy way of saying disturbing the peace.

[@robertcronin6603]

Well said 👍

[@charleschris4123]

Today we call it misinformation. Or fact checking! Get the vaccine it’ll stop Covid from spreading Dr. Fauci one year later Pfizer says nope we never had proof for anyone to say that!

[@Lucius_Shiro]

Hey, Peruvian here. I really like that there's a video in English about what happened in Yungay. Sadly, this story is no longer taught in Peruvian History. Now it is just some kind of legend told by grandpas. Thank you for translating this story into English and thank you for not letting it die. And, as always, Viva El Perú! You are doing a great job!

[@GovindaDevDas-Vision-Darshana]

In the 90ies we still learned it in school

[@Lucius_Shiro]

@@GovindaDevDas-Vision-Darshana Well, I'm from 2005 and my teacher never talked about it :c

[@Norfnorf12]

@@Lucius_ShiroI believe you. We live in a time where people try hard to let dark history be forgotten, especially when it comes to government failing.

[@TheWisdomOfTheAges_PsyM_Revd]

@@Norfnorf12 Bingo

[@TileGuyJesse]

I just realized that this didn't happen in the middle of the night when everyone was caught unaware but during the day which means everyone heard it, looked up, saw it coming, screamed, tried to run and were then silenced in just moments. Everyone. Tragic!

[@cranksetwrench]

A similar disaster happened in armero colombia

[@jessnalulila5709]

@@cranksetwrench Armero happened during the night

[@jimmyormerod4075]

its called nature mate shit happens o well

[@cranksetwrench]

@patluxor2482 I here this argument all the time but the benefits put weigh the risks, Flood plains typically have much more fertile land and fertile land produces food and humans live around where they have food.

[@MustertheBrohirrim]

@@cranksetwrench until they don't

[@ClefairyRox]

I've never heard of this disaster. That's absolutely horrible. And it was entirely preventable, too... The clown that saved those kids was a hero. But its heartbreaking to hear that most of those kids lost their entire families.

[@MannyBrum]

A lot of people think more bad things are happening now, but it's just that prior to the mass adoption of social media we just weren't aware of 98.9% of the stuff going on in faraway places.

[@villebooks]

@@MannyBrum Exactly.

[@ionryful]

​@@MannyBrum True

[@develyntwocentshenderson5739]

the government was stupidly obtuse as many gov'ts are. but they never will pay for their moronic assholery

[@jimmyormerod4075]

you cant move an entire town becuase of a posibilty of avalanche in that case thousends of places all over the world would have to be mmoved and were would you put them we are not safe anywere from nature people die its part of life mount versuvius is active still and yet has one of the worlds largest citys at the foot they know if it erupts they will all die and the city destroyed but where else can they go volcanoes litter italy they just hope it doesent like we hope earthquakes or tornados wont happen we can not stop or predict nature

[@masterskrain2630]

Sadly, a more and more common response to an outside threat that is reported to a Government entity: "We don't want anyone to say anything that would contradict what WE tell you. We have to cover our rears, no matter how many lives it costs!"

[@DR3ADER1]

Especially during the 50s-90s, when dictatorships and Juntas were in vogue in most parts of South America. It didn't matter that massive landslides like this can travel at an average speed of 430 km/h, which is faster than most hypercars travel today, and the main head of the first wave can carry house-sized boulders at subsonic speeds. Speeds of this nature can only be achieved by fighter jets under normal circumstances and the only time passenger planes travel at these speeds is when they are carried by a channel of the winter jetstream, like how one Heathrow-bound Boeing 747 was carried by the winds of a "bomb cyclone" in February 2020, reaching 825 mph, not even Concorde travelled at such speeds with this level of frequency.

[@bridgetstoli2347]

That has always been the case.

[@squiremuldoon5462]

Sounds familiar.

[@rationalbacon5872]

@@squiremuldoon5462 very familiar in the last few years...

[@richardcranium3579]

@@rationalbacon5872 yep. Left wing dictatorship back then too.

[@luismercado5160]

I visited Yungay around a decade ago. Something I'll never forget is a church that was still peaking over the dirt, but it was literally cut open in half; some meters down the road, you could see a huge rock (4-5 meters radius) laying there, also half buried. Only by looking at them you knew what happened, the mere thought of rocks this large falling breaking buildings like nothing is far too terrifying

[@mariaclaudiaquintanaestrad7053]

As a Peruvian I when there when I was like 9 years old, I was a family trip with my cousins and a friends family. We buy flowers and let them in one of the monuments none of us have family that was from there but it one uncle had live there when he was young, he remembers that they city was very pretty. Sadly, in that same earthquake he lost his mother and sister in the city of huaraz

[@pirincri]

The church you're talking about is a replica. The original church was entirely covered. Everything is many meters below ground.

[@samanthagomez7074]

Wow really l wasn't born jet when this happened l was born in 1972

[@saaraa7876]

I visited Yungay about a decade ago as well. A sobering experience, the nature there is so beautiful and deadly.

[@PikaDamos]

I remember learning about this back in 1990 when I was a little kid on the Compton Encyclopedia Disk. I told my university professor about this event and he did not believe me. I am so glad that I stood firm.

[@Tom_Samad]

Massive respect to the clown who saved all those children.

[@durratulaishah3703]

For once the clown didn't try to kill children

[@wadewilson8011]

Yeah not that deserves respect. That's someone who deserves a metal I shall be called a hero. Those are terms that are used too loosely these days.

[@RutakoVon]

@@wadewilson8011 what?

[@anonymousphantom9644]

@@wadewilson8011 no meds? what the fuck are you talking about?

[@YoungXelDong]

@@RutakoVon i think he meant lead

[@manuelmontiel5418]

@ The Ranen's Eye • Thank you for narrating the account of this tragic event. I was 12 years old and lived in Lima Peru at the time and even though we were about 250 miles south of the epicenter the seismic power we felt was incredible . It was far stronger than the Northridge and Whittier narrows earthquakes in Los Angeles California which I also lived thru. The force was so great that it would lift the ground up and down nearly 5 feet in waves as far as you could see down the main Avenue. Like a giant blanket . It realigned your mental parameters of what natures power and what you previously thought could be possible.

[@siamneko5306]

Damn... Thats terrifying... There are earthquakes here too. But that sounds really bad.... Σ( ° △ °|||)︴

[@feraynironmane8101]

If that's not nightmare fuel, I don't know what is. That's mortifying. I'm glad you survived to share your wisdom.

[@QueenSunstar]

I saw something very similar during the Nisqually Earthquake. The stairs I was standing by were going up and down in waves. I was too fascinated by the stairs to notice the ground. Oddly, I never felt movement under my feet. I think I was too enamored by the stairs moving that I didn’t feel the ground moving.

[@theravenseye9443]

How terrifying. Thanks for the comment.

[@denylynn8379]

“ It realigned your mental parameters of what nature’s power and what you previously thought could be possible “ Manuel Montiel 2023

[@Hartford1992]

This one left me speechless... never heard of this incident before. It's unimaginable.

[@ickleshouse]

same here, worst bit is, now news is all about so called celebs, their boobs / tattoos /luxury lifestyles etc

[@IndigenistVoices]

To make matters more tragic, many of the surviving children were taken by international child traffickers working in parallel with the international "aid" groups.

[@thewildcardperson]

@@IndigenistVoices source or you made it up

[@IndigenistVoices]

@@thewildcardperson I didn't, I spoke with Peruvians, including one from that generation. To paraphrase their words, a plane came to pick them up, and they were never heard of again (this includes by families in other towns and cities).

[@TruthWillFreeYou]

@@IndigenistVoices They were adopted by families around the world. If you Google them you can see they went on to become citizens of countries around the world. One ended up coming back to Peru and being a guide at the site of this tragedy. Those people were probably just spreading conspiracy theories. Although child trafficking is real I can find no evidence any of those children were subjected to it. I don't think it's a good idea to just believe something and spread it around as a fact to others just because a random person/s told you this. In the year 2016 my country alone adopted 5,370 children from foreign countries. A plane coming to pick them up and then never seeing them again is exactly how adoptions go for foreign countries lol. From that persons narrow perspective it may have appeared like that but it was not the case. The Peruvian government would have approved their adoptions.

[@luismarcialvergaradiaz5363]

As a peruvian who went there in late 2014 or 2015, the place is now a "cementery", it's pretty much now a tourist attraction, palm like trees, a replica of an old church, tombs and the remains of a bus that looks like it was crushed by something really heavy. The place looks calm but when you know what happened, it has an eerie feeling of how a town was there and dissapeared after one day

[@goffik1980]

Absolutely staggering. Not only the horrendous death toll, but also the facts. I can't quite get my head around house sized boulders moving significantly faster than a jet-powered airliner. Terrifying. One of the worst things is what this disaster has in common with so many others throughout history... the ignorance of authorities, who choose to ignore very clear warnings. Really enjoy your videos, by the way. Well researched, well written, well narrated... and no ridiculous background music. Keep it up.

[@minimalistic_banhaus]

There's no way the boulders were moving several times faster than terminal velocity. That part is hogwash.

[@goffik1980]

@@minimalistic_banhaus So tell me, what is the terminal velocity for a large boulder of undetermined shape and size? You have absolutely no idea whatsoever. Even some WWII era bombs were able to hit nearly 750mph when dropped unpowered from 20,000 feet, so how about you learn some physics before making your baseless claims?

[@TheDweeb002]

Kind of reminds me of that episode of Rick and Morty where these aliens elites got Gary to tell the inhabitants of their planet that there was no environmental danger, even though they were all about to die - because power and influence

[@muninrob]

@@goffik1980 Do you really believe that a much larger, randomly shaped, stone is going to fall faster than an aerodynamic bomb? Please explain to me EXACTLY what processes you believe produced that result. It's more likely, that someone looked at the drop height, calculated the effect of gravity, and ignored air resistance and speed loss from repeated ground contact. (on paper engineering VS on site engineering) So how about you educate me, since my aeronautical engineering degree failed to explain any process that would produce your desired result....

[@goffik1980]

@@muninrob Lol, I don't have to explain anything to you. You believe whatever you want to believe, it makes no difference to me whatsoever. I have no interest in worthless debates that cannot be proved one way or the other with armchair "experts" who think their opinion is fact.

[@saragrant9749]

I’m a historian, have studied history for two decades- and had never heard of this!! What a sad, evil situation. These people were absolutely sacrificed by a government so corrupt it’s sick.

[@Heike--]

Evil only exists because good men do not kill the government officials that commit it.

[@theodoresmith5272]

I've been. Very sad and unfortunate. That part of peru is super pretty. Usually even when a government does warn people, they don't leave. In peru you are asking native americans to leave there homeland. Peru is a very poor country and look at how long it takes relief to get there. Its only a little better today as any road from the more populated coast has to go up into the andes. Ive been on the road today. 13 hours from lima with 5 hours doing 15-25 kph on a dirt tract. What could they have done with them? At what point is it someones own responsibility if they choose to live under a giant rock formation when it falls? To your own administration, you said you haven't ever even heard about it. Seems irrational to then judge people with such little evidence and understanding of the overall situation as 1 KZbin video. The video itself says many more died in peru. Never mentioned the magnitude of the earthquake either. In going to say it was a very strong one and a 500-1000 year event. Peruvians are very sweet but super stubborn. They would have set up road blocks and not let themselves be removed from the area. In Chile, I felt my first earthquake. I ran out the hotel room after I finally figured it out. The lady that owned the hotel was laughing at me. She said it happened at least weekly and I could relax. Lol I doubt peru from a fanatical or structural availability stand point could have done much either.

[@KebabMusicLtd]

The warnings would have been widely known and those who wished to leave the area would have done so. It's like the people of Los Angeles or San Francisco know they are scheduled to have another earthquake of high magnitude sometime soon, but do people pag their bags and leave?

[@saragrant9749]

@@KebabMusicLtd in this case, the warnings likely WEREN’T well known by the general populace. That government didn’t want anyone knowing what was actually going on as they didn’t want it affecting their political situation- and a large portion of the inhabitants leaving would definitely done so. It’s not the first time a government chose to keep valuable and lifesaving information out of the public domain just for their own corrupt gain.

[@digi_edits]

I live in Perú and have heard from this story since I was a kid, but never understood fully the case of that tragedy until know thanks to this very informative video. So sad that even as a published investigation they discarded the danger. R.I.P, L authorities.

[@FinnishLapphund]

I don't know what is most heartbreaking, all those lives lost, or the survivors that was truly left with just the clothes on their backs.

[@8jof544]

9:33 It was almost the same result for my great-grandmother. She was one of the few survivors of the cemetery hill. Even if I grew up in Lima I feel I'm linked with the people of the Callejón de Huaylas, and I will never forget that the site was a little and prosperous paradise before this tragedy.

[@mariaclaudiaquintanaestrad7053]

Mi tío vivo allí también, solo 2 años pero después su familia se mudó a huaraz tristemente allí perdería a su madre y hermanas. Después de eso su padre, envió a el y a sus hermanos a vivir de forma permanente a lima

[@kevinbyrne4538]

Reminds me of the eruption of the Colombian volcano Nevado del Ruiz in 1985. Once again, there were warnings, which were ignored. The eruption melted ice and snow on the volcano, and a lahar poured into the town of Armero, killing half of the town's 50,000 residents.

[@theravenseye9443]

Hi Kevin, I have a video on the Nevado del Ruiz....

[@annegrey3780]

I spent a while in Peru in 2007 after an Earthquake. I didn't have very good Spanish, I'd only meant to be there for a trip but since the group I was with included clinicians, rescue workers, and other useful people, we couldn't very well continue vacationing...but I remember a woman telling me about this. I didn't fully understand all of it at the time, but it's not like this is a common enough event that if you got the gist of the story you wouldn't immediately recognize it. But, honestly, that's the only other time I'd ever heard of it. Terrifying.

[@JomirohMCplay]

I remember my grandma telling me about this disaster. She lived in the coastal city of Chimbote and my mother was one year old. The earthquake destroyed their house and the sea reached the main plaza of the city.

[@elliottprice6084]

I've read about this disaster in books, but this video made this tragedy so much more vivid. South America seems so prone to disasters with monumental death tolls, another that was featured on this channel was the 1985 Columbian volcano eruption. Such a sad disaster as it happened so quickly

[@cranksetwrench]

And native people’s in the America’s have documented these kinds of disasters before for thousands of years yet we still don’t learn from their teachings

[@janettemccubbin8246]

A good reason to always be sceptical about government “experts”!

[@crowdemon_archives]

One thing if they're actually qualified and experienced. Another thing if they are just there because, reasons?

[@thhseeking]

Not when government "experts" are trying to save people's lives, but the government tries to silence them.

[@TwoFingeredMamma]

Yeah, why inject an experimental potion for something with a 99.9% survival rate. Now i see them all dying. It's very surreal to me how stupid most humans are. The power of a leather sack inflated and kicked around has hypnotyzed the whole world and turned men into fools. Oh well, Prince Phillip did say he wanted to reincarnate as a virus to kill humanity. It looks like he got his wish.

[@thhseeking]

@@TwoFingeredMamma "see them all dying"? Who, the nutter anti-vaxxers?

[@pluutos]

Very fortunate to say my grandmother survived this with her mother and infant daughter with her father not being as lucky. It forced her to move to Lima and eventually the United States after losing all the lands her family had owned and worked incredibly hard for generations in Matacoto. I love her very dearly and can’t ever begin to imagine the trauma she has experienced from having almost everything ripped away so quickly.

[@formerlydistantorigins6972]

I've read and heard about some horrific disasters, but somehow this just hits that much harder than most. Possibly the mixture of foreknowledge that it could happen, the speed of the disaster, the scale of it, the length of time it took rescue workers to arrive, and the fact it remains buried like a time capsule. I image that some time in the medium to long term future, this place will be the South American version of Pompeii

[@Ideamiller5]

Hello, The Hermit, The "South American Pompeii" happened in Colombia in 1985 where around 25,000 people where buried alive in the town called Armero. After the Volcano Del Ruiz erupted, it took 2.5 hours for the sludge of mud and rocks to reach the town. It was already 10:30 pm, therefore no-one saw it coming. The whole area basically became an instant cemetery. The Raven's Eye also created a short documentary about it. It's called "Colombia's Killer Volcano - Nevado Del Ruiz - A Short Documentary". Here's the link: kzbin.info/www/bejne/q5ylkHiPpLVlZtE

[@spencersholden]

True. I would love to see a work of fiction covering the concept. Future archeology is an interesting subject

[@terryt5512]

This is yet another absolutely horrific disaster that I had never heard of, and am now aware of only by virtue of this outstanding channel. This one is particularly rough and heartbreaking---another example of authorities that had been warned of a significant hazard well ahead of time and chose to ignore it. In this case, they actively suppressed that it even be spoken of. To say that what happened is of biblical proportions is absolutely on the mark. And an entire village and 20+ thousand people with it are left buried where they were when it happened. This entire event is beyond conception; I don't think I'll ever be able to wrap my head around it. Thanks so much, Raven Eye. These are stories that absolutely must be told, and the way you do it is completely riveting.

[@theravenseye9443]

Many thanks for your comment - it's appreciated!

[@IndigenistVoices]

To make matters more tragic, many of the surviving children were immediately abducted by child traffickers working along side the international "aid".

[@mysteryport]

@@IndigenistVoices What? Shit.

[@IndigenistVoices]

@@mysteryport The ironic thing is that the people who told me this, didn't know the implications of an airplane taking the children and never hearing of them again. I on the other hand was thinking "clinton cartel" and "MEGA group's maxwell-epstein ring".

[@mysteryport]

@@IndigenistVoices Man. I am just going to believe that those kids went to a safe place after experiencing this already horrifying tragedy.

[@DL-nn1ws]

I’m a Peruvian. I’ve just visited this place less than a month ago. It’s stunning. If it wasn’t for the tour guides you’d barely be able to tell it was once the most beautiful city in the “Callejón de Andahuaylas”. There’s also a film recorded by the Japanese reporters present at the time of the disaster. You can only get it at the memorial site because AFAIK it’s not publicly available

[@v3ck1n]

Add that to the lost media wiki as partially found!

[@DL-nn1ws]

@@v3ck1n wait, it’s been listed as missing?

[@v3ck1n]

@@DL-nn1ws No, I mean that it is likely media that the majority of people have never heard of or seen, but it is still accessible to be viewed in some capacity by the public

[@samanthagomez7074]

Wow really

[@toddtourville984]

How sad for all those children that survived to have no family left.

[@lisaaneepeacock]

A very sad story, but your narration is excellent!

[@theravenseye9443]

Thank you very much!

[@IndigenistVoices]

The story becomes sadder when you found out that the international "aid" was a smokescreen to traffic many of the surviving children. This happened within hours after the event.

[@markevans8446]

@@IndigenistVoices Great ! Cheap kidneys for usa !

[@IndigenistVoices]

@@markevans8446 Dark, lol... although I was thinking darker, as in child sex trafficking.

[@RangerOkie88]

My Grandpa was in the army when this happened, he took me there in 2002 and told me how he got there with the relief resources by parachute, the place is so surreal , when you are there you feel this supernatural silence , quietness … he told me how they just burn the ground , there were just too many to dig .. the clown was part of the circus that was in town…also , there was train that dissapeared, was never found.. We lost some distance relatives there

[@RangerOkie88]

@poweralimin2637 oh , i c , good for him I guess…..i meant my grandpa was in the peruvian army, during this …

[@JohnnyAngel8]

That was tragic yet fascinating. Thank you for the history lesson.

[@pirincri]

I'm Peruvian and lived in the Cajejón de Huaylas for 5 years . I've visited the Camposanto de Yungay. One thing that is very notable is the dead palm treetops that barely stick out of the ground. Those are the palm trees of the main plaza. If you look at old photos of that plaza, you'll notice just how tall those trees were, and how many meters of soil the old city is buried under. The sheer amount of earth falling like a liquid is really counterintuitive.

[@worldbreaker10]

Thanks for sharing this to the world, in my country, Peru , young people are starting to forget this event, its sad.

[@TashaBryanUK]

Heaven forbid someone's feelings might be hurt instead of heeding a warning... crazy.

[@crowdemon_archives]

Clearly lost of lives is not as bad as... Telling people to get out of that area? /s

[@Limalolz]

Thanks for covering this! As a peruvian, had never seen this disaster on yt before. Very well done.

[@robandcheryls]

Seen and heard a lot of stuff in my 53 yrs. This has to be one of the most dramatic experience I’ve JUST heard about. 🇨🇦 Veteran

[@didymos32]

the thought that 1000’s and 1000’s of bodies remain/remained buried there is astonishing to me, sounds like a hotspot for the supernatural.

[@crowdemon_archives]

A lot of lives taken too early, ye. If you're the sensitive kind, I think you might pick up a lot of grief and rage too.

[@bswihart1]

I always listen to warnings, I don’t take them for granted

[@lololandify]

I love your short docs! They're so detailed and informative and you cover stories I haven't heard of

[@thetravelingsuitcase2530]

Yesterday (as of writing) the Yungay Tragedy just had its 53 year anniversary. R.I.P to all victims

[@hebneh]

Not mentioned was a significant part of this story, which is that there was a hill or ridge between Yungay and the anticipated path of the landslide. Everyone assumed this would channel an avalanche around the town and protect it. Obviously the size and depth of this landslide was so great that it just swept right over the low ridge without being diverted, and it quickly destroyed Yungay.

[@Tempest-jc3me]

I had one Latin America teacher mention this to me during office hours. She called it the Vajont Dam of South America. In a way, she was frighteningly accurate, both events were landslides that triggered mountain tsunamis, and in both cases the authorities had hushed everything up ahead of time.

[@vizagothx7294]

a chunk of rock half a mile wide. im having trouble wrapping my head around how big that was.

[@briansaiditsoitmustbetrue4206]

This COULD have been avoided ... Such a shame nobody listened to the 2 guys that predicted this would happen 8 years earlier

[@katiemartin487]

Wow, I never heard of this before, this is absolutely horrible, and the fact that this could've been preventable if the Pervian government just listened to the climbers, and the clown who saved all of those kids by making them go to high ground is a legend, but it's so sad that they lost everyone they loved. So sad. 🥺😥😥😭😭😭

[@leticiaigbinazaka2283]

To think that this could have been prevented like so many other disasters is really unsettling, especially with the ASTRONOMICAL death toll. Thank you Mr Raven for covering another lesser known disaster

[@benjmoore4065]

Always look forward to you videos always worth the wait 👍

[@16gauge90]

Never heard of this. Thank you for your hard work.

[@theravenseye9443]

Thanks for listening

[@RedNightDragon1]

What of the Peruvian authorities who deliberately suppressed the warning of the MIT geologists?

[@07kamichamakarin]

As almost as everyone here in the comment section, I never heard of this tragedy. Thankfully this is brought to light with this video. May all the passed ones rest in peace. To the survivors, I hope they began a good life after that horrendous tragedy.

[@benmcreynolds8581]

The title reminds me of this story I heard about (I think in Romania?) About this old Romanian village in this valley being intentionally destroyed by a mining company (copper mine I think?) And the mine was negligent and mean and wanted the people of the town gone, and so they had their toxic liquid settlement ponds collapse and flood the village which now is buried under water. Eerily tho, certain parts still stick out of the water, like the top of this old Romanian church point, there is a graveyard 🪦 in shallow edge of the toxic lake. It's such a tragic thing that people's life's work, memories, homesteads, were directly stolen from them and now it just serves a purpose for holding toxic run off from a large mining corporation... (Any image's and video I've seen of the place tho is oddly beautiful. In a macabre obscure way but I feel so much sadness for those who once lived life's there..)

[@fatfreddyscoat7564]

I’ve learned that the mayor in Jaws was based on many real life characters.

[@Psychiatrick]

So was the shark!

[@XxXShevampXxX]

Thank you for covering these lesser known disasters.

[@felixcat9318]

The parallels between Yungay and Bhopal are clear! Warnings ignored before being deliberately suppressed and a campaign to smear those who raised the alarm! The consequences for the innocent victims that were betrayed by officials were horrific. This was on a scale (like the 2011 Japanese Tsunami) completely unimaginable! The government's order banning digging for victims is purely self serving, they want to (literally) keep it buried. For the victims it must have been horrific and I can only hope that they died very quickly, minimising their pain. Thank you for this compelling documentary about a disaster that isn't that well known, which you presented and narrated superbly. This was equal to, or better than the best, professionally produced documentaries I have seen.

[@nylarose2310]

Thankyou for this, I havent seen any coverage on Yungay before, growing up in Peru with a fear of earthquakes, this place has haunted me. I remember visiting Yungay a few times. As soon as you walk into the area, the knowledge that below your feet lies an entire village, homes, families, their lives, entombed in that one moment. It's hauntingly devastating.

[@Favoritesmatt2013]

This channel is an absolute gem. Your content, production, narration and execution are superb! How do a donate a few bucks? I believe I did so before.

[@Favoritesmatt2013]

I figured it out by finding the link for buymeacoffee. Thanks.

[@theravenseye9443]

Thanks again - yes you did buy me a beer before, so cheers!!

[@ShaunHopkinsAVFC]

No matter the country, the government is never held truly accountable for the countless lives they waste over the course of history. It’s just disgusting.

[@zelenbrat]

I needed to watch just one of your videos to binge watch the whole channel and every time you upload I know that it's going to be a really fascinating story that I've never even heard of. Thanks a lot and keep it up!

[@cmonkey63]

I would have been in Grade 1 at the time, about the age of the school boy who lost his whole family in the disaster. I also grew up in a village surrounded by mountains, and remember the workmen blasting the rock to make a highway. The whole school shook when the dynamite went off.

[@zactro387]

Nice to hear that someone is speaking about some Peruvian history for once, you just gain a subscriber, greetings from Contamana-Perú

[@theravenseye9443]

Thanks and welcome.

[@JS3music]

I thoroughly enjoy and respect an individual who will go out of his way to make actual good journalism, and not just do pointless, nothing clips all day to get attention. Thank you sir, this is highly educational and thoroughly entertaining, bewildering.

[@keithdavison2960]

New one to me thank you. Just because I lack decorum those two climbers are my two favourite accompaniments

[@TalRohan]

Thankyou for recounting this tragedy in a thoughtful and sensitive manner Its scary that many of these types of disasters could have been completely avoided because some one said ".this is bad.." and no one listened, or did listen but covered it up. I wonder if the ones who did so here were ever appoached.

[@littlewillowlinda]

We really don't talk about things like this enough

[@m.streicher8286]

The Peruvian gov would probably prefer that.

[@stuartf2946]

Always so well done Mr Raven. I wonder what the surviving children would say today about it? Totally tragic.

[@newshodgepodge6329]

Long long long after nearly everyone alive today is forgotten, it wouldn't surprise me if this area someday becomes an archaeological dig site.

[@cobden28whittehnam7]

Like the excavations at Pompeii in Italy, near Mt Vesuvius?

[@beachcomber2008]

Horrific indeed. Very saddening. Thanks.

[@randyhebbebusche3644]

Thank you for your expertise and factual information. Very sad for all of those people.

[@onewayturtles]

The Peruvian officials from this story would have made great Twitter content moderators.

[@stargazeronesixseven]

🙏 Deepest condolences to the Families & Friends of the Departed ... May the Departed be Blessed to a Better World & Realm ... 🕯🌍

[@kempedkemp]

Nice presentation. I was 15 and don't remember hearing about it, though I probably did! A friend and neighbor of mine (Col. Lawrence C. Brown) was the military attaché to the Peruvian embassy in the late 1950's for a time. He held interesting posts in some exotic places after being wounded at Anzio.

[@Contessa6363]

New subscriber here thank you for telling their story. I had never heard of this and I don't remember my parents speaking about this tragedy. I was 7 years old at the time when this happened. In those days my parents and my uncle would sit around the table every Sunday and speak of world events. I would be playing in the other room but would always listen to them. That's why I'm surprised they never mentioned this event. RIP To All The Victims ❤️🙏🙏🙏🌹🌹🌹❤️

[@theravenseye9443]

Thanks for the comment and sub!

[@laughingbeast4481]

Being from Czechia, I know mostly about that Czechoslovak expedition that vanished there. There's even nice, sad book about them including letters they wrote home before this happened.

[@denylynn8379]

I am so saddened to hear this horrific event. Thanks for bringing my attention to it.

[@kevin6293]

This is an incredible story. I can’t believe I’ve never heard of it before now.

[@ruperterskin2117]

Right on. Thanks for sharing.

[@nowistime8070]

I have never heard of this. I really like the way you narrate

[@theravenseye9443]

Thanks!

[@Tom8201]

The people in charge were bigger clowns than the one who led the kids to safety.

[@gregwilkin6565]

Thank you for sharing.

[@bailey2913]

Thanks for the post I would of remained ignorant to this tragedy had you not brought it to my attention. Such a sad and preventable situation RIP to all the souls who lost their lives to this disaster 😞

[@hurricanefury439]

this might be one of the most brutal disaster stories i have ever heard the possibility of the disaster was deliberately kept quiet so nobody could prepare and it all came down so fast that there was no chance to run or even try to run and the entire city was completely oblitorated. even an atomic bomb couldn't do that

[@kzrlgo]

Thanks for another great video. This channel is under subbed. FYI, it's The Netherlands. Holland is a region in the The Netherlands, made up of the two provinces: North and South Holland. 😉

[@theravenseye9443]

Thanks for the info!

[@robertwilloughby8050]

Have you done St Jean de Vianney yet? Another town that disappeared, this time in Canada. The death toll was small, but the town was lost, and in a way that you, Raven, might find surprising! (And there are small towns in Canada that are still in danger of this today).

[@jimmyormerod4075]

all over the world places are in danger fuck me you snowflakes dont understand geography its called a natural disaster for a reason out of our controll there is nowhere safe were in canada can you live withought avalanches nowhere same in scandanaiava they ust hope it doesent happen and if it does then its just natures way and we should not change it

[@theravenseye9443]

I'll look into it, thanks!

[@marcturner3647]

Wow I’ve just come across your videos and to be honest i absolutely love everything about your videos, i love history and looking at what happened years ago brilliant work thank you 👍👍👍

[@trident1314]

Another great upload 👍

[@chrismoody1342]

Now that sounds horrific. I’ve never heard of this disaster before. I know that Peru and Chili are know for some of the most violent earthquakes ever recorded. But the numbers here are truly on a scale that is hard to believe. RIP to all those lives lost.

[@mariaclaudiaquintanaestrad7053]

This was one of the worse ones, in the country. There was other that cause a tsunami and destroyed almost all the Callao. (A province next to Lima) the population was of 5000 at the time, only 200 survived

[@MaitreMechant]

thanks for all these docs

[@skylargray455]

The clown who led the children to higher ground and safety was a true unsung hero in the tragedy.

[@veronicaroach3667]

Well I found myself wondering where on earth I was in 1970 - because i do not remember this at all - how ghastly ! I was in the UK at that time & very busy with 4 young kids, a job & a troublesome marriage - so I think I was basically a zombie in that era ! So sad for all those lost lives & families ripped to pieces !

[@lDaNu]

First time I see Yungay being covered in this format! I'm peruvian and I went there some months ago, it's a beautiful place. Many people still live around the area. Just noticed that you also covered the Mesa Redonda fire of 2001, man, that place catches on fire very often. Another big fire was The Malvinas one in 2017, with only 2 people dying but their story is very tragic (They were employees working in very poor conditions who were locked in a warehouse when the fire broke out.). Another event that may interest you is the 2020 Villa El Salvador explosion caused by a gas leak from a transporting truck

[@TracyA123]

Jesus God Almighty! This is a tragedy I knew nothing of. Shocking amounts of dead. That photo of the baron plain is hard to comprehend. I cannot imagine the horror of seeing that coming and knowing there is nowhere you can go and nothing you can do. Such a sad subject but Respectfully done sir!😞

[@cosmosrunner2468]

Love your channel. Thank you.

[@NoahAllston]

I grew up hearing about this disaster, and I’m sure many other Peruvians did. It was such a big thing they actually named the 31st of May as the National Day of Remembrance and Education on Natural Disasters. We learned evacuation techniques and more, most schools and some workplaces also have rehearsals during that day. I live through two big earthquakes back home, the worst one an 8.4 magnitude one in 2001 in Arequipa, it caused a tsunami and wiped a big part of my hometown which is why I moved to the capital back then. I now live in Japan and all I learned and experienced sticks with me to this day.

[@marchellochiovelli7259]

Note to self. Never live in mountainous valleys or near rivers.

[@alainthery5224]

I remember when it happened! And I was there in the early 80s while the surviving palm trees still had palms and you could barely see the top of the church tower. An idea of the violence of the event could be seen from the fact that the town was not exactly next to the river but supposedly protected by some hills which the massive flow of debris jumped over before burying the town. Sobering memory.

[@stuman01]

I have never heard of that event before now - thank you.

[@philosopherkingzant2037]

A literal clown had more sense of responsibility and brain cells than the people who were charge over there

[@enpakeksi765]

Been looking at images of the wrecked bus the past few minutes, and it's so utterly mangled that I cannot tell whether it is upright or not, much less visualize in my mind what it once looked like.

[@murraymclean5177]

Boulders fell at 680 mph! Wow, that’s unbelievable!

[@hallucinato2307]

Wild to think of an avalanche moving close to the speed of sound

[@michaelbibby6341]

Great content, always informative with insightful narration. I keep trying to place the accent but so far all i can pinpoint is probably west Yorkshire.

[@theravenseye9443]

Huddersfield - but it's been a long time since I lived there...

[@tkralva.6668]

Every year the day is remembered with national earthquake emergency drill. Been to Yungay, and seen the remains of the village, and the bus etc. And purchased the video and book on sale their which provides the first hand accounts. Went with a family, friends of my daughter from swim club, whose parents of parents came from Yungay.

[@bumbum1919q]

So sad that so many people died. Mother nature is a powerful force, people tend to take her for granted, she gives warning signs and sadly people refuse to listen to her. May the people of Yungay rest in peace. Thank you for this video.

[@Glenn-F-Rice]

I was 3 when this happened. I imagined myself sitting on a tricycle in the aftermath.