A once-booming seaside resort in the north of England has become a 'ghost town', so much so that streets of homes are boarded up, while some houses are being flogged for just a few thousand pounds.
Horden, in County Durham, has felt the sting as its thriving coal mining industry declined. It was once home to Horden Colliery, which broke records for its productivity in years gone by and employed thousands of people from the area.
The town’s proud and long-time mining history gained fame across Europe, after tireless workers set a record for the most coal mined in a single day, extracting 6,758 tonnes on May 9, 1930, reports the Mirror. The Horden Colliery was shut in February 1987, as the coal mining industry in the UK was killed.
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Now, there are streets of boarded-up homes for sale for as little as £5,000, as more and more locals have left the area. The last remaining residents have stated there are no more places for people to go in the area to socialise, and a drug problem is rife in the town.
The Daily Star reported that Horden has completely transformed since the late 1980s, with YouTuber David Burnip, who goes by the screen name Wandering Turnip, recently visiting the town to document its change firsthand. One local who spoke with the Burnip said the town has "gone down the banks since the collieries finished".
He said: "You had all the working men's clubs, and all the public houses. There is practically none left here now." The man went on to claim that drugs have "taken hold" in the area, and the problem doesn't affect just younger people, but also some residents in their 40s and 50s.
The YouTuber also visited some of the currently vacant properties available in the town.
The cost of properties in certain areas of Horden has changed drastically, showing how the once-booming town has changed over time. Four properties were listed on RightMove in late May this year, up for auction with a starting price of £5,000.
Among the recently sold properties in Horden, one in Tees Street went for £30,250 - despite it being bought for almost double the price in 2006. Another, in Seventh Street, was sold in February for £22,750, while four years ago it was sold for £36,000.
Not all the homes that recently hit the market, however, went for such a low price. One in Rosedale Terrace was being sold for almost £98,000 in February - while it was previously bought in 1996 for £23,500, RightMove showed.
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