The eerie £40m skyscraper left to rot after being abandoned is magnet for dark tourists
Known as the 'ghost tower', an abandoned skyscraper in Bangkok now attracts only illegal urban explorers instead of the wealthy occupants it was designed for.
A skyscraper in Thailand which has stood empty for almost 30 years is a magnet for urban explorers. The Sathorn Unique Tower in Bangkok was built as a luxury apartment building during the 1990s economic boom in Asia.
But the Asian financial crisis in 1997 halted construction and the tower block has remained derelict and empty ever since.
Said to be built on top of a graveyard, the building is now known as the "Ghost Tower", attracting illegal urban explorers rather than the wealthy occupants it was intended for.
Rising to 185m, building work began in 1990, but only 80 percent was completed before the economic crash saw construction end.
Now the structure is covered in graffiti, strewn with litter and said to be completely abandoned.
Swedish backpacker, Stig Johan Kristian Hammarsten, was found hanged on the 43rd floor in 2014.
The building has been mired in controversy in the past, with architect Rangsan Torsuwan arrested in 1993 and acquitted in 2010 over alleged involvement in an assassination plot.
According to Architectural Digest, that made it difficult to find investors to finish the building even after Thailand's economy stabilised.
Since 2014, it has been illegal to climb the tower, although people reportedly still do, posting videos online from the top and inside.
Sathorn Unique Tower features in the 2017 Thai horror film, The Promise, directed by Sophon Sakdaphisit.
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Reports cast doubt on whether the building will ever be completed, though it's said the tower will continue to attract tourists and explorers.
It is just one of several creepy skyscrapers around the world which stand empty. This includes China's Goldin Finance 117, which would have been one of the world's tallest buildings had its developer not run into financial problems.
Pyongyang in North Korea is also home to the Ryugyong Hotel, known as "the Hotel of Doom". The 105 story, pyramid shaped structure was a Cold War bid by the country to show off its strength.
It topped out at 1,080 feet in 1992, but despite the structure's completion, it remains unfinished inside, according to Architectural Digest.
