Black Monday
Black Monday is a significant event in the global THV pandemic that took place on January 6th, 2025. This event plays a major key role in Dying Light 2 Stay Human.
Chemical bombs, described by survivors as "yellow dust", were dropped over the city of Villedor, possibly by the GRE and upon the order of the Butcher. The intention was to vaccinate the population and slow the spread of the virus, but it appears that it failed.
The event is to referred to by numerous sources, one of them being a survivor named Sarah/Sara who can be heard telling other survivors how she came to Villedor as a refugee and how she witnessed the events of Black Monday. A Peacekeeper can be heard saying "The Butcher's our greatest enemy, he's responsible for the Black Monday bombings and the death of two million people."
Gameplay function
The chemicals dispersed from the bombs separate the two districts of Villedor, making it nearly impossible to get to the other side. It also acts as a barrier for going out of the map's boundaries. If Aiden steps into a part of the affected areas, the immunity meter will go down to low and critical levels immediately, causing him to cough, and slowly turn into one of the monsters. Step out of the area if you don't want to die, as at a low immunity level, you will only have 5 to 10 seconds depending on how much immunity you have. The chemicals are also found in the inside of most of the buildings you can explore. This, combined with the dark level of the building your going through, turn out to be a real deadly combination, as the immunity meter is already going down from the moment you step in, and this makes the meter decrease at an alarmingly fast rate. It is best to carry some immunity boosters as they can help with your immunity. Also try to take care of any enemies that are around, because they will make things significantly worse, from blocking your path to allow you to get out, to cornering you, and killing you.
Consequences of Black Monday
The chemical bombings of Black Monday are said to have killed two million people, wiped out a significant portion of vegetation growing in the area and infected most people in the city. It is believed that the chemical's interaction with water produced this unintended reaction. The chemicals are also said to have caused the creation of crystals which are sought after for their supposed infection-delaying properties and have become a valuable item to sell at stores for a good load of Old World cash.
According to the character Adrian, a birdwatcher, chemicals have done considerable harm to the local ecosystem and so the variety of birds has decreased. In the quest Birdwatching, Aiden finds a sparrowhawk nest, to the delight of Adrian, who says that it is evidence that nature is returning to the city because the amount of chemical particulates in the air is decreasing.
Before the bombing, it appears that Villedor was still substantially populated and relatively functional as a city, though it is unclear as to what extent. It could have been growing so fast with modern technology, like Tokyo, NY, and LA, or it could have been that they were still into the whole trading business and expanded upon it.