In 1982, a fire broke out in the Soviet Antarctic research station Vostok and destroyed the station's power plant. The expedition was left without light or heating right before the four-month long polar night set in, with an outside temperature of -70 °C. The men decided not to ask for help, because they knew that it was nowhere to be found. The Soviet Union was not a proponent of risk management; extreme situations demanded heroic acts. And the men didn't think twice. Still, a rift divided the crew into two opposing camps.