Lake Nyos. Cameroon
From boiling lakes to poisonous ones. Lake Nyos in Cameroon is a particular body of water. It is a deep lake on the flank of an inactive volcano with a pocket of magma beneath that leaks carbon dioxide (CO2) into the water, changing it into carbonic acid. As such, it is an “exploding lake,” one of only three known in the world. The “explosions,” however, are not the usual ones. In 1986, Lake Nyos suddenly emitted a large cloud of CO2, which suffocated 1,800 people and 3,500 livestock in nearby towns and villages.
