Western Australia Deleted a Town From Its Maps in 2007 and Took Down Every Sign Pointing to It

In June two thousand and seven, Western Australia removed a town's name from its official maps and from every road sign pointing to it. The town was still standing. Eight people still lived in it. What the state removed was the information telling you how to get there. Wittenoom, in the Pilbara, was once the largest town in the region and Australia's only supplier of blue asbestos. Three mines produced around a hundred and fifty thousand tonnes of fibre, and more than three million tonnes of waste. That waste was used to surface the roads, maintain them, build the airstrip, and make building materials for the town. Which is why the roads could not simply be closed. The roads were the contaminant. LOCATIONS IN THIS VIDEO Former Wittenoom townsite: -22.2397, 118.3347 Wittenoom Gorge tailings dumps: [confirm] Yampire Gorge: [confirm] Karijini National Park boundary: [confirm] Access: do not go. The Western Australian Government strongly advises against all travel through Wittenoom and the surrounding areas. All main roads to the former townsite and the gorge are permanently closed and trespassers may be prosecuted. The declared contaminated area covers forty-six thousand, eight hundred and forty hectares. This video is not an invitation to visit. SOURCES Department of Planning, Lands & Heritage, Wittenoom contaminated site records Shire of Ashburton, Wittenoom and Yampire Asbestos Management Area policy Management of Asbestos Contamination in Wittenoom, GHD and Parsons Brinckerhoff, 2006 Wittenoom Closure Act 2022, Parliament of Western Australia Blue Murder, Ben Hills ABC News, Wittenoom closure and Banjima native title reporting STILL THERE Three million tonnes of tailings in the gorges The cemetery, which the state said it would not touch Forty-six thousand hectares of declared contaminated land Old Deviation covers the roads and railways Australia stopped using and what is left of them. #Wittenoom #Pilbara #Australia