Pripyat amusement park
Pripyat, Ukraine · built 1986
The Pripyat amusement park is an abandoned amusement park located in Pripyat, Ukraine. It was to have its grand opening on 1 May 1986, in time for the May Day celebrations, but these plans were cancelled on 26 April, when the Chernobyl disaster occurred a few kilometers away. Several sources report that the park was opened for a short time on 27 April before the announcement to evacuate the city was made. These reports claim that the park was hurriedly opened to distract Pripyat residents from the unfolding disaster nearby. However, these claims remain largely unsubstantiated and unsupported. The park—and its Ferris wheel in particular—have become a symbol of the Chernobyl disaster.
AmusementPark data from Wikidata (CC0). Summary from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA).