Do you want to leave everything you do in this stuffy city and go to a warmer place, to the beach, closer to the water, but there is no opportunity? Have you often thought about how strong and dangerous the water element is, and specifically the rivers of our planet? It is possible that if you ask the first person you meet what associations he has with a river, he will answer about the feeling of a pleasant pastime with a fishing rod on the shore of a peacefully flowing reservoir. We suggest you take a look at our selection - perhaps the desire will disappear.
1. Lake of Death, Italy
On the island of Sicily, famous for the destructive power of Mount Etna and the equally frightening, though not flaunted, power of the mafia clans, there is one very dangerous attraction. The waters of the Lake of Death, which are not really water at all, but concentrated sulfuric acid, are so deadly that, according to rumors circulating in Sicily, the Cosa Nostra used this place to hide the corpses of their unfortunate enemies. In a matter of minutes, the deadly reservoir, fed by two underground springs of H2SO4, destroys any organic matter, leaving only a lifeless space around.
2. Rio Tinto River, Spain
The blood-red waters of the Rio Tinto, which originates in the Spanish province of Huelva and flows through Andalusia, are not only unattractive in appearance. Due to the high concentration of metals coming from copper, silver and gold mines, this body of water has earned the reputation of being one of the most acidic places on Earth. The water, whose pH fluctuates between 1.7 and 2.5 and practically corresponds to the acidity of gastric juice, is dangerous for any living creature. The only inhabitants of the "Martian river" are scientists' favorite aerobic bacteria extremophile, which feed on iron.
3. Black Hole Lake, Russia
Just a few years ago, according to the order of the President of the Russian Federation, the swampy lake Black Hole, located between Nizhny Novgorod and Dzerzhinsk, was to be filled with sand and razed to the ground. The reason for such a barbaric attitude towards the reservoir is simple - this object of socialist heritage, saturated with waste from the Orgsteklo plant, is recognized as one of the most polluted in the world. The stench emanating from the Black Hole is so strong that it even drowns out the soot from the fires that engulf Russia on hot summer days, and the liquid filling the lake is reminiscent of caustic black resin that sucks in all living things.
4. Yangtze River, China
The third longest river in the world, second only to the Amazon and the Nile in length, surpasses them in another, not at all positive quality. Due to the fact that 17 thousand Chinese settlements located along the banks of the Yangtze do not have purification systems, all waste from their life activities is dumped into the reservoir without filtration. Numerous chemical plants, steel and oil refineries, as well as regular transportation of hazardous goods do not add to the purity of the river. According to the most conservative estimates, the volume of polluted water in China's main waterway reaches 34 billion tons and continues to grow.
5. Lake Karachay, Russia
Until recently, an hour spent on the shore of Lake Karachay in the Urals was enough to meet an agonizing death due to radiation of 600 roentgens. It was all due to an explosion that occurred at the fissile material storage facility of the Mayak plant in 1957, which caused unprecedented pollution of the Techa River and its cascade of ponds. Although the plant receives several million rubles each year to eliminate the consequences of the disaster, the underground waters continue to spread deadly radiation. Fortunately, according to recent studies, the situation in the Lake Karachay area is gradually improving.
6. Amazon River, South America
The danger of the world's most voluminous river, considered one of the seven natural wonders of the world, lies not only in its power. The artery, which pours about 220 thousand cubic meters of water into the Atlantic Ocean every second and has been awarded the title of "River Sea", is teeming with bloodthirsty monsters. It is home to insatiable piranhas, merciless black caimans, huge anacondas, giant predatory arkaims and small but no less terrible parasites candiru, which penetrate the urinary system. The Amazon basin is full of impassable swamps and deadly quagmires, and its floods, which form high tidal waves, are destructive to fields and villages.
7. Boiling Lake, Dominican Republic
Situated near the Valley of Despair in the Dominican Republic's Morne Trois Pitons National Park, the lake has a bad reputation. If you accidentally plunge into it during the dry season, you can easily get boiled alive, repeating the fate of the persistent king from The Little Humpbacked Horse. The water in the center of the Boiling Lake, shrouded in thick white steam, reaches a temperature of 92 °C, suitable only for making tea. This body of water has caused so many accidents that even in the rainy season, when the lake becomes relatively cool, swimming here is strictly prohibited.
8. Ganges River, India
The Indian epic Ramayana tells us that the waters of the sacred Ganges River have the power to bring the dead back to life and cure illnesses. Unfortunately, the reality is far from the myths: India's main river is one of the most polluted bodies of water in the world. Waste from numerous industries and feces from overcrowded cities flow here. Even bathing in the Ganges, where the number of enterobacteria is 120 times higher than normal, leads to infectious diseases and causes the death of thousands of people every year. The ritual burial of bodies in Varanasi is added to the problems that hinder the purification of the sacred reservoir.
9. Onondaga Lake, USA
In the 19th century, Onondaga Lake, located near Syracuse, was a popular vacation spot. A century later, the reservoir, influenced by technical “progress,” found itself on the brink of an environmental disaster. In 1901, Onondaga’s water, saturated with nitrates, phosphates, mercury, and pathogenic bacteria due to industrial waste, was banned from use in the food industry. In 1940, a veto was imposed on swimming, and in 1970, on fishing. After a ban on waste disposal, the installation of treatment facilities, and the adoption of the Clean Water Act, the situation with the lake is gradually improving, but it will take a long time to clean up.
10. Citarum River, Indonesia
With the advent of advanced technologies, more than half a thousand factories have sprung up along the banks of the once picturesque, and now one of the most polluted rivers in nature, located on the island of Java. The reservoir, which previously served as a source of income for numerous fishermen, has become home to other hunters - garbage catchers. Dirty water, teeming with bacteria and invisible under a thick layer of household and industrial waste, is still used for drinking and irrigating fields. Scientists predict that in the coming years, the pollution of Citarum will reach a critical level and may lead to the shutdown of the largest hydroelectric power station on Java.
11. Zaire, Central Africa
It is also the Congo River, which is the largest in West Africa and in the vastness of Central Africa. The river ranks second in Africa in terms of its length, amounting to more than 4,700 kilometers. Zaire is distinguished by its most dangerous current, although at its source, which is located in the valley of Lake Tanganyika, the waters of the river are calm and unhurried. Along the entire path of the riverbed, the river has a huge number of waterfalls and rapids. The most famous of the waterfalls is the "Devil's Cauldron", its dangerous length is almost 120 kilometers. For the abundance of dangerous places, the Congo River is given second place in the list of the most powerful and dangerous rivers.
12. Orinoco, South America
The Orinoco flows through South American, Colombian and Venezuelan territory. It is one of the longest rivers on the planet and is considered the third longest in South America. The river begins at the base of Mount Delgado Chalbaut and is 2,140 kilometers long. The rapid river current slows down in the wooded plains, but the abundance of waterfalls in places makes the river a dangerous and difficult obstacle to overcome. The greatest damage to the areas adjacent to the river is caused by large-scale annual floods.
13. Yangtze, China
The longest river in China and the entire Asian territory. It occupies an honorable third place among the largest rivers in the world. Its length is 6,380 kilometers and replenishes the East China Sea with its waters. The whole world knows how dangerous are the floods and large waves, destructive force, arising on the Yangtze River and often damaging the dams built for safety. The river has been repeatedly studied and concluded that its waters are especially dangerous in certain seasons. For the most part, the potential of the Yangtze River is used for the production of electricity and as a shipping route.
14. Brahmaputra, Bangladesh
The main part of this river carries its waters through the lands of the Republic of Bangladesh. The Brahmaputra begins its long journey in the southwestern part of Tibet, then flows through the Himalayas, the Assam Valley, and then enters the lands of Bangladesh. The length of the river exceeds 2,900 kilometers, and its resource is used as a shipping route for freight and passenger transportation, and it also enters the irrigation system of adjacent territories. But you should not perceive it as a quiet, docile water surface intended for shipping - some sections of the Brahmaputra are distinguished by increased danger, especially during the spring snowmelt in the Himalayas - it causes large-scale floods. In addition to spring floods, the river is dangerous with its powerful tidal waves that rise along the entire channel.
15. Mississippi, USA
It is the second largest river in the United States of America. The length of the waterway is 3,766 kilometers. The source of the Mississippi is Lake Itasca, located in Minnesota, and it flows into the Gulf of Mexico. The population living in coastal areas often suffers from the Mississippi's harsh temper. It has destroyed many built dams, and according to forecasts for 2008, it was supposed to overflow its banks with an unprecedented flood and flood huge areas. Fortunately, these forecasts were not confirmed, but the Mississippi is so unpredictable and strong that evacuation of local residents in these areas is a common occurrence.
16. Yenisei
According to statistics, the Yenisei is the largest contributor to the waters of the Arctic Ocean. The huge, full-flowing river, 5,545 kilometers long, flows through Mongolia and Central Siberia. The Yenisei is often frozen in ice, making navigation difficult or impossible. There are suggestions that the glaciers are slowly melting, which could free up 500 km in the near future.3 water and cause unprecedented flooding.
17. Parana
It is the fourteenth longest river on the planet. The main part of the riverbed passes through Brazil, but part of the river has reached Argentina and Paraguay. The river is almost 4,000 kilometers long and three more rivers flow into it. The river current is especially fast and destructive in the southern part. People have died here many times, buildings and the coastline have been destroyed. Terrible storms caused by winds and hurricanes often occur on the Parana River.
18. Lena
The river with the beautiful female name Lena is the tenth longest river on the planet. It carries its waters for a distance of 4,400 meters, after which they become part of the Laptev Sea. Before flowing into the sea, the river is replenished with water from two more rivers. A distinctive feature of this reservoir is its strong current, which intensifies even more in the spring and summer, when the water temperature rises. A large-scale flood in 2007 led to the flooding of more than a thousand residential buildings and twelve cities with Lena waters.
19. Mekong
The final position is given to the Chinese Mekong River. Its route lies through the lands of Burma, Thailand, Yunnan, Laos, Vietnam, and Cambodia. The Mekong holds eleventh place in the ranking of the longest Asian rivers. According to some data, the length of the Mekong is 4,350 kilometers. The river constantly experiences water level jumps, there are waterfalls and difficult sections, so daredevils who decide to conquer the river by swimming will have to prepare for inevitable difficulties. According to data from 2000, the waters of the Mekong River caused the death of almost a hundred people.
20. Blue Lagoon, UK
The Blue Lagoon in England is actually a former quarry that was flooded after it closed. And it's the last place you'd want to go for a swim with your family. The water is tinted turquoise by calcite, which leaches out of the limestone rock. And the calcium oxides raise the alkalinity of the water to dangerous levels.
The water contains a lot of garbage, but locals do not refuse to swim in the Blue Lagoon. In their opinion, if you do not dive in with your head, there will be no harm to your health.
