The Dyatlov Pass Incident: More Theories and Conjecture - Part 5

And theories multiply as to what happened to the 9 hikers on that day in 1959.

6 ) Avalanche

The avalanche theory is one of the more popular ones. It is less conspiracy induced and allows Mother Nature to play a key role. But, in fact, Kholat Syakhl is not a very tall mountain and is not very steep. And the diaries of the hikers talk of a fairly thin snow cover.

Those facts cannot dismiss all of the danger that could occur, of course. It is possible for a part of the upper layer of snow to shift, rolling over the landscape. Such an event could have happened and the snow could have rolled over the campsite in the form of a huge slab of snow. This would have damaged the tent and could cause panic among people trapped under several feet of snow. This type of event would explain why the tent was cut from the inside. And it would explain a retreat down the hill without stopping to gather everything up.