Wittenoom - Ghost town in the Australian desert

Wittenoom is a town in the Pilbara region of Western Australia about 1,106 km north north east of Perth. During the 1950s, Wittenoom was the Pilbara's biggest town, but was shut down in 1966 due to health concerns from asbestos mining at the nearby Wittenoom Gorge.

Today it is a ghost town with approximately 8 residents who receive no government services. In December 2006, the Government of Western Australia announced that the town would be degazetted, and in June 2007, Jon Ford, the Minister for Regional Development, announced that the townsite status had officially been removed. The town's name was removed from official maps and road signs and the Shire of Ashburton is able to close roads that lead to contaminated areas.