Mystery of the Dyatlov group death. Евгений Буянов

the lost group! Ryagin restored the route and put it on another map from memory, and Rimma gave this map to rescuers on February 19th. On the same day Gordo and Blinov left for Ivdel in order to coordinate search of the Dyatlov group.

      A general scheme of the route was recreated: from the Second Northern mining camp the group was going to move northeast along the valley of the Lozva river and along its head to the mountain Otorten (1182, on old maps: 1234). After a radial ascension onto this top they were planning to turn sharply towards south and along the Poyasovyi Kamen ridge to pass heads of the rivers Unya, Vishera and Niols up to mountain Oiko-Chakur (or Oikachakhl, 1322) with a radial ascension onto the top of this mountain. Straight distance between Otorten and Oiko-Chakur makes up about 70 km, but in fact the Dyatlov group was supposed to pass more than 100 km on the ridge. Later they were planning to move east from Oiko Chakur along the valleys of the Malaya Toshemka or the Bolshaya Toshemka and get to their confluence into the Severnaya Toshemka and get to the road to Vizhay along its valley, thus closing the campaign ring. Here the campaign was supposed to finish with a return to Sverdlovsk through Vizhaj-Ivdel-Serov.

      Arrangement scheme of search groups

      Red arrows – way of the Slobtsov group

      Yellow full lines – way of the Dyatlov group

      Yellow dotted line – Dyatlov's route and his spare options

      White dotted ovals – search zones of groups.

      (surnames of group leaders, bold arrow – landing place with conventional and serial group numbers)

      White dotted arrows – concentration of groups in the Auspiya valley

      Red triangle emergency tent of the Dyatlov group

      Blue triangles search groups camp of rescuers on the Auspiya

      Dyatlov had foreseen spare options shortening the route in case of delays, as well as emergency exits in short ways along river valleys leading to settlements in case of an emergency case in the eastern direction. Exits to the west (to the Ust-Unye, Diy, Priiskovoi) weren't provided because of their remoteness. This general scheme of route was visible, but there were a lot of possible options of its passing, especially at the final stage of the campaign. It was also not clear along which heads of the Lozva the group would go to the Otorten mountain in the initial part.

      The group disappeared on this route. Tourists of the Ural Polytechnical University were captured by panic. Volunteers record began in order to form a rescue team of the UPI. On February 20th there was a meeting of tourists «state of emergency with the Dyatlov group!» for the purpose of mobilization and preparation of search groups (70 people came). Only strong guys who had tourist experience and equipment could become members of the search and rescue group, – others should not be taken. It was both unsafe and useless, – untrained people would have first needed a training on life and work in the winter taiga. Female student-tourists actively helped with organization of communication, collection and distribution of information and search of volunteers, urging familiar guys to participate in searches. On February 22nd the UPI staff of search activities was created which formed the management structure of search groups. These groups were supposed to be headed by tourists who had experience of managing several campaigns: Boris Slobtsov, Oleg Grebennik, Moisey Akselrod. From 21.02 the local prosecutor Tempalov and representatives of the UPI Blinov and Gordo were engaged in the search of tourists in Ivdel. Excerpt from Maslennikov's protocol (sheet 67 of the criminal case):

      «… in the morning of 24.02 I left to Ivdel by plane. The Grebennik group, Vishnevsky and Ortyukov also flew with me. Blinov, Gordo were already in Ivdel. Blinov was the organizer of search, and Gordo was responsible for equipment …».

      Note. Here and further on literal excerpts from documents and literal quotes of witnesses (without corrections) are marked in italics.

      Tempalov received an instruction from Prodanov, secretary of the Ivdelsky city town committee of CPSU to take measures to search for tourists (and Prodanov himself had received this order from from regional party authorities in Sverdlovsk). Sverdlovsk ordered aviators to carry out air reconnaisance. Prodanov involved Dryakhlykh, engineer of Power wood plant who had communicated with the Dyatlov group in the 41-st quarter.

      On February 21 Dryakhlykh and Blinov carried out investigation by plane along the valleys of the Auspiya and Toshemka rivers, but no traces of the Dyatlov group were found. From Blinov's diary:

      «… The plan was as follows – to fly to the 2nd Northern settlement, then up along the Auspiya towards Otorten, then further to the south along the Vishera River to the mountain Oyka-Chakur, then along the valley of the Severnaya Toshemka to the settlement Northern Toshemka. Because of bad weather we didn't reach Otorten. We flew to Auspiya's middle course, flew along the Severnaya Toshemka-no traces were found.»

      On February 22nd Dryachlyuh together with Gordo took off by the helicopter on northern Toshemka, where on the road of visors with itself forester Kuznetsov A.I., visited Anyamov A.P. settlement. and Bakhtiyarov P. I. yurtas. They asked Muncie on passable tourists, but traces of DyatlovDyatlovthe Dyatlov group didn't find and on finishing sites of a route of a campaign.

      The organization of rescue efforts from 24.02 charged to the head of the UPI military chair to colonel George Semenovich Ortyukov. Ortyukov could agree with the chief of the Air Force of the district about allocation of the plane and two helicopters, and Maslennikov was engaged in preparation and the organization of actions of search groups of tourists and climbers. A radio communication with groups adjusted by means of Nevolin and Yaburov radio operators of the Northern geological expedition (hands. Sulman). By means of regional and local authorities and the Ministry of Internal Affairs in searches involved group of military led by captain Tchernyshov from Post/Box-6602 (connection of internal troops of the Ministry of Internal Affairs in Ivdel). Involved Moiseyev's conductors and Bridge with office and search dogs, and later – the soldier of protection of Ivdellag (Ivdel-Camp) under command of lieutenant Potapov and sappers of lieutenant colonel Shestopalov with mine detectors.

      Locals also were involved in searches, – Kurikovs, Anyamov's Mancie families from the settlement Suyevatpaul and hunters of Komi. Bakhtiyarov's family conducted search of tourists in the zone of dwelling on valleys of Vizhaya and Toshemka. Some locals joined groups of search: hunters, foresters (Pashin, Kuznetsov), military (Cheglakov). Actively interrogated hunters, researchers and locals, whether saw they DyatlovDyatlov's tourist group. Warned about need to inform a search staff at detection of any traces of the gone group.

      The area of search was huge, and to avia investigation and descent groups by military helicopters during searches by times very much stirred a lack of time of short winter day (only 6 hours) and adverse weather conditions. The review from the plane is very limited therefore to find group or to make out on snow traces of skis on taiga open spaces very difficult. For such region of strength of rescuers were obviously insufficient. Therefore the staff of search tried to narrow a zone of searches tactically. The main attention concentrated to the most remote, difficult and dangerous area from Otorten's mountain to Oyko-Chakur. Therefore the two first search groups decided to land near Otorten's mountain (Slobtsov's northern group) and around Oyko-Chakur (Grebennik's southern group), – in 70 km to the south of Otorten. Moving towards each other, these groups should find DyatlovDyatlov's traces and meet on ridge. To groups of searchers the task was put to find traces of the gone group: ski traces and traces of parking to leave on them to the place of incident and to assist DyatlovDyatlovThe Dyatlov group.

      Search works were also saving, it was necessary as to rescue both live, and dead, – for burial and clarification of causes of death. But all hoped for the favorable outcome of searches, – here for success it was required to find for live participants of DyatlovDyatlovthe Dyatlov group as soon as possible. And the delay with search of victims was not so critical as couldn't prevent the tragedy any more.

      Tactically searches built so: after disembarkation around search the group was divided into some prospecting links from 2–3 people who made within one