Normal Looking Photos With Disturbing Backstories

Space Shuttle Columbia on January 16th 2003 NASA's Space Shuttle Colombia launched from Kennedy Space Center in Florida carrying a seven-person crew consisting of astronauts David Brown Rick Husband Laurel Clark kalpana Chala Michael Anderson William mcol and Elon Ramone their mission was to conduct various experiments that required a low gravity environment over the following 2 weeks the shuttle was scheduled to return on February 1st after the successful completion of the research unfortunately things did not unfold as planned just before 9:00 a.m. on the day Colombia was set to return Mission Control noticed abnormal temperature and pressure readings from the shuttle the spacecraft Communicator called up to Colombia to discuss the readings but it was already too late as the shuttle re-entered Earth's atmosphere it disintegrated resulting in the loss of all Seven astronauts on board military helicopter near Fort Hood in Texas captured this infrared video footage of the shuttle breaking apart following the incident NASA immediately dispatched teams to debris sites in Texas and later Louisiana to collect any remnants of the shuttle the recovery process took weeks as debris was scattered over more than 2,000 square miles among the recovered material was an unprocessed role of film which included a group photo of the astronauts the crew appears relaxed and cheerful completely unaware that the damage their shuttle had sustained would make their deaths inevitable the space shuttle Colombia disaster Drew significant media attention leading NASA to suspend all space shuttle flights for 2 years as it investigated the cause the investigation revealed that just over a minute after launch a large piece of insulation foam had detached from the shuttle's fuel tank and struck its left wing at about 500 mph this impact breach the wings thermal protection layer creating a hole that allowed atmospheric gases to penetrate during re-entry the damage ultimately caused the shuttle to become unstable and disintegrate it's estimated that all those on board died within minutes of the re-entry the photos from the recovered film now serve as a haunting reminder of Colombia's final Boxing Day Tsunami mission in late December of 2004 31-year-old Deborah Evans was on a Christmas holiday with her boyfriend in CAC Thailand throughout the trip the couple who were from England took numerous photos to capture their vacation memories among them was this photo of Deborah enjoying the beach tragically within hours of it being taken Deborah along with the majority of the people in the background would be gone on December 26th of 2004 an undersea Earth Quake off the coast of Indonesia Unleashed a massive tsunami in the Indian Ocean Waves up to 100 ft High traveling its speeds of up to 500 mph smashed into surrounding coastal regions leaving a trail of Devastation never seen before in less than 24 hours the tsunami caused over1 billion in Damages and destroyed nearly 500,000 homes This Disaster claimed the lives of nearly 230,000 people making it the deadliest tsunami in history the west coast of Thailand where Deborah Evans was staying for her vacation was one of the regions most affected by the tsunami for weeks following the disaster Deborah's parents Bryson and Margaret garlic called the Thai Embassy daily hoping for news about their daughter it wasn't until April 6th of 2005 that a police officer arrived at their home to inform them that Deborah's remains had been discovered her funeral was held in herfordshire England later that month in September of 2005 Deborah's parents received something unexpected a role of undeveloped film that had been delivered to local police in a handbag belonging to Deborah after developing the film themselves they found the beach photo which turned out to be the last ever taken of her though it appears to be just an ordinary vacation snapshot knowing it captured the final hours of so many people makes it Eerie to look [Music] Hillsborough Stadium Disaster at on April 15th 1989 Hillsboro stadium in Sheffield England was set to host a highly anticipated FA Cup semi-final between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest English fans eagerly awaited the match knowing the winner would Advanced to the final however what was meant to be an exciting day of football tragically turned into something far more devastating the disaster that unfolded during the match would be remembered as one of the darkest moments in sports history at 2:30 p.m. that day just half an hour before the match was set to begin thousands of fans were still outside Hillsboro Stadium eager to get in as the crowd grew larger and the start of the match approached the police made a critical error at 2:52 p.m. Chief superintendent David duckenfield who was in charge of the event event ordered a large exit gate to be open so that more people could get in before the game started this single decision would alter the lives of many within 5 minutes over 2,000 fans surged through the gate which was typically only opened after a match to allow for a quick exit this sudden influx led to severe overcrowding in the two Central sections of the stadium as more people poured in it quickly became clear that something was terribly wrong the overwhelming pressure from the incoming crowd push those already inside against the perimeter fencing surrounding the field trapping them with no way to move or escape this photo taken as the disaster unfolded shows just how dire the situation had become in such a short time at around 3:06 p.m. just minutes after the match began it was called off due to the escalating crisis by then however it was already too late dozens of fans had suffocated due to compression asfixia from being packed so tightly While others were fatally injured due to the immense pressure of the crowd ambulances rushed more than 140 people to nearby hospitals but the disaster was so severe that many could not be saved in total 94 fans lost their lives that day with three more succumbing later to injury sustained during the event with nearly 100 deaths and over 700 injuries this tragedy became the deadliest disaster in sports history the Hillsboro stadium disaster was met with shock and grief across the UK in the days following the incident however some saw the tragedy as an opportunity to exploit for profit on April 19th 1989 Just 4 days after the disaster the Sun newspaper published a front page article under the headline the truth this article falsely accused Liverpool fans of causing the incident through drunkenness and violent Behavior making several shocking and completely unfounded claims among these was the accusation that Liverpool fans pickpocketed victims who were injured or died during the tragedy these claims were based on unverified and Highly Questionable sources leading many to speculate that the sun fabricated the story to drive sales through sensationalism the publication of the truth provoked immediate and widespread outrage particularly in Liverpool the article was seen as a grossly insensitive and inaccurate portrayal of events exacerbating the grief and Trauma experienced by the victim's families as a result the sun faced overwhelming condemnation especially in Liverpool where a boycott of the newspaper began almost immediately and continues to this day in the months following the Hillsboro Stadium tragedy the public demanded accountability leading to several legal proceedings to uncover what had happened a report published in August 1989 concluded that the disaster was caused by a failure of police control but no individual officers were named many victims families were dissatisfied with this conclusion suspecting that authorities were involved in a coverup to protect themselves for decades following the disaster families and friends of the victims along with several advocacy groups campaigned for justice which eventually led to the establishment of the Hillsboro independent panel in 2009 the panel's findings were shocking the report revealed that a lack of coordination between police and Emergency Services had significantly delayed medical assistance on the day of the incident it was estimated that nearly half of those who died could have been saved if help had arrived on time even more shocking was the discovery that police had altered 164 witness statements to remove criticisms of their actions and shift blame away from themselves the revelations from the Hillsboro independent panel's report caused widespread sh shock and anger prompting formal apologies from the Prime Minister and South Yorkshire police the findings also led to criminal investigations into several individuals a key figure was Chief superintendent David duckenfield who was responsible for opening the exit gate that ultimately caused the overcrowding duckenfield initially claimed that fans had forced their way in but he later admitted during 1999 Court proceedings that he had lied to cover himself although he was in charged then the New Revelations about the misconduct under his watch cast a fresh Spotlight on his involvement in 2017 duckenfield was charged with 95 counts of manslaughter by gross negligence but was eventually acquitted of all charges his acquittal was met with deep disappointment by the families of the Hillsboro victims despite investigations into duckenfield and others for their roles in the incident no one was ultimately held accountable for the disaster the Hillsboro Stadium disaster will go down in history as one of the most infamous sporting tragedies in the world it wasn't only the loss of so many lives that made the story shocking but also the Betrayal by those entrusted with Public Safety and Truth despite the eventual Revelations of police failures and the subsequent efforts to correct the narrative the lack of accountability left many feeling that True Justice was never served Stairway to Heaven on February 26 2015 18-year-old dalan Pua was in aahu Hawaii visiting his grandmother while there he planned to explore the Hau stairs also known as The Stairway to Heaven this now removed steel step structure originally built during World War II had become a famous attraction on the island of aahu over the years despite being off limits to the public due to its Steep and dangerous terrain many locals and tourists continued to trespass for the breathtaking view from the top as an avid hiker dalen was eager to finally experience this renowned view for himself before beginning his climb up the Haiku stairs that morning he made a Facebook post announcing the start of his hike it would be his last post ever as dalen made his way up the stairs he sent multiple photos to his friends over text showcasing the beautiful scene around 11:00 a.m. he sent this final photo after that he went completely silent and stopped responding to messages his friends didn't think much of it at first assuming he wanted to enjoy the hike without distractions however when dalen didn't return home that night concerns began to arise on February 27th after nearly a full day without contact his grandmother reported him missing within hours a search was launched around the Haiku stairs involving the US Navy the Honolulu fire department drone operators and volunteers despite extensive efforts no trace of him was found the search was nearly called off but resumed after some hikers in the area reported hearing cries for help unfortunately this did not lead to any new information and the official search was suspended on March 3rd relatives and local volunteers continued looking for him until March 5th but nothing was ever discovered dalen Pua was never seen again following dalen's disappearance his family decided to take a closer look at the last photo he ever sent hoping it might provide some clues about what could have happened to him upon inspection they noticed a chilling detail in the background of the photo a barely Visible man lurking in the bushes beneath the Haiku stairs dalen's family immediately alerted authorities to this mysterious figure as potential evidence despite multiple appeals to the public in the coming months the man never came forward and remains unidentified to this day under normal circumstances accidentally capturing someone in the background of a photo wouldn't be unusual However the fact that a man appeared in the last photo dalan ever sent before disappearing immediately raised concerns it seemed particularly suspicious that dalen stopped responding to his friends shortly after he unknowingly captured a mysterious figure that was Rel ly close to him many speculate that the man might have done something to dalan after the photo was taken which could explain why no further photos were sent while this cannot be confirmed from the photo alone the fact that the man never came forward makes the situation even more suspicious though we may never know if the man was involved the mere possibility that he was is unsettling the thought that dalan might have unknowingly photographed the person who would soon end his life is truly [Music] The Whitaker Family terrifying on the evening of December 10th 2003 the Whitaker family consisting of parents Kent and Patricia and their two sons 19-year-old Kevin and 23-year-old Bart were preparing to go out to a celebratory dinner the occasion was Bart's upcoming graduation from Sam Houston State University in Texas for which his parents plan to surprise him with a $4,000 Rolex as a graduation gift before the family left the house that day Patricia took this photo of her sons smiling and seemingly in a good mood little did she know this would be one of the last photos she would ever take when the family returned to their Sugarland Texas home after dinner they were confronted by a masked gunman waiting inside by the front door the gunman immediately opened fire hitting Kevin who was the first to enter as Kevin fell rria was also struck the as salent then shot Kent shattering his humorous Bart who was still outside retrieving his cell phone from his car heard the commotion and rushed inside a struggle ensued during which BART was shot in the arm the masked attacker then fled out the back door jumping over a fence to escape Into the Night by the time authorities arrived it was too late for Kevin who had already passed away Patricia was still alive but barely breathing so she was quickly air lifted to Memorial Herman Hospital unfortunately she succumbed to her injuries on the way meanwhile Kent was taken to the ICU and Bart was hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries both survived the attack with Kent and Bart safe in the hospital police quickly began an investigation at first glance the crime scene looked like a burglary gone wrong however detectives found that televisions electronics and other valuables were left untouched the most peculiar Discovery was the open gun safe in an upstairs room with a handgun missing it was later found near the back door where the attacker had escaped the fact that the house appeared ransacked yet nothing was taken along with the perpetrator seemingly knowing where to find a gun in the house didn't add up the suspicious nature of the scene LED police to focus on BART who was the least injured in the attack and was coincidentally also outside when it began as authorities delved into Bart's background they uncovered a curious detail that heightened their suspicion his school transcripts revealed that Bart had only ever been enrolled as a freshman at Sam Houston State University this meant that he had been pretending to attend school for the past 3 years and had lied about graduating this deception suggested a motive for the crime as Bart likely wouldn't have been able to maintain the facade much longer with his supposed graduation approaching the impending revelation would have greatly angered his parents who had purchased several luxury vehicles for BART to celebrate his supposed academic achievements now they were about to discover it was all a lie while this finding caught the police's attention what they would soon uncover about bart was far more Sinister on December 15th 2003 a former classmate of Barts named Adam hip walked into the Sugarland Police Department asking to speak with detectives he revealed that back in 2001 Bart had mentioned wanting to have his family murdered to inherit their assets worth over $1 million although this information alone wasn't enough to arrest Bart Adam agreed to call him while authorities listened in with Adam's help the detectives identified two potential co-conspirators Bart's former classmate Chris Brasher and another acquaintance Steve Champagne Police interrogated the men and while both initially denied involvement Steve eventually confessed best he disclosed that Bart had recruited Chris to kill his family with Steve serving as the getaway driver Steve explained that Bart's plan was to Stage the crime as a burglary gone wrong and that Bart's own shooting was deliberate to make the story more believable Steve also informed detectives that he and Chris had disposed of a bag containing incriminating evidence in a nearby lake divers later recovered the bag corroborating Steve's account in September 2005 authorities arrested Bart in calvo Mexico following an international Manhunt Bart had been hiding in Mexico for over a year under a fake identity supporting himself by working at a furniture shop he had fled the United States in June 2004 after realizing suspicion was mounting against him for the attack at his home after his arrest he was extradited back to the United States to face prosecution for their rool in the crime Steve was sentenced to 15 years in prison while Chris received a life sentence Bart was sentenced to death and after many years in jail he was scheduled for Execution on February 22nd 2018 however 30 minutes before the execution was set to occur his sentence was commuted to life imprisonment this decision came after his father Kent pleaded with the Texas governor's office to spare his life despite Bart's actions which resulted in the deaths of P rria and Kevin and the attempt on his own life Kent forgave his son looking at the photo of Bart and his brother taken before the family dinner on that fateful night is far more Sinister in retrospect considering that his devious plan was already in motion at that point one can only imagine what might have been going on in his mind posing with his brother for a picture knowing what was to happen to him when they returned home this photo is a chilling example of the dark darkness that can be concealed behind a smile