Houses, churches, even a hotel, half-ruined, sinking in deep holes, or seemingly diving from steep hillsides – Ropoto is a village that seems to consist of creepy, eerie buildings.

A ghost town in the heart of Thessalia, near the thriving town of Trikala, according to Greek Reporter Ropoto has become a ghost town, standing on hollow ground ever since the landslide that saw many buildings collapse in 2012.

It was not an unforseen catastrophe however. Geologists have been issuing warnings since the 1960s, when they first became aware of the ruptures in the ground. And yet, no precaution was taken, no policies implemented.

Denial and inaction have condemned the village, while in the 1980s new building permits were issued, further burdening the fragile ground. Then the rain came. Unable to push rainwater out to the surrounding stream due to poor infrastructure, the village started to crumble. Flimsy foundation and steep inclines saw buildings being swept by the landslide. More than 300 families were forced to move out of their homes as the houses began to slip down the mountain.

The once picturesque village has become a modern ghost town, towering over the hillside, a series of uninhabitable buildings standing in ruins, slowly sliding down the mountain.