8/8/2019 10 Amazing Survival Stories

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8/8/2019 10 Amazing Survival Stories

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muscle tissue of the dogs which led to Hypervitaminosis A. Mawson continued alone and fell into a

crevasse and saved himself by wedging his sledge above him. So bad was his condition when he arrived

at base camp, his rescuer exclaimed, My God, which one are you?

3. Juliane Koepcke

Of the 93 passengers and crew on board LANSA flight 508 on December 24 1971, only 17 year old

Juliane survived. The plane was struck by lighting above the Peruvian rain forest and Juliane was blown

out of the plane, still strapped to her seat, and landed two miles down in the dense thicket. She came

round, blind in one eye, with a broken collarbone and cuts and bruises. Borrowing her biologist fathers

advice that water runs downstream and where theres water theres civilization, Juliane wearing a mini

skirt and sandals trekked for nine days until she found a small cabin. She cleaned her injuries and

worm-infested cuts and waited until the occupant came back. She was eventually reunited with her

father and continued her studies to become a zoologist.

2. The Andes Flight Disaster

Uruguayan Air Force Flight 571 was flying over the Andes on Friday 13 October 1972 when it crashed

into peaks hidden by cloud. It was carrying the Uruguayan Stella Marris College rugby team to a match in

Chile, but only 16 lived to tell the tale. The others died during the crash, in the days soon after from

injuries or cold, and eight succumbed to an avalanche on the 17th day. The stranded survivors were left

with no option but to eat the flesh of their dead teammates and adapt to living in the extremeconditions. The remaining men were found almost 10 weeks following the initial crash when two

members went on an expedition and flagged down a passing Chilean horseman.

1. Paul Templer

After years of serving in the British Army and travelling the world pursuing adventure and danger, Paul

Templer decided to settle down in his native Zimbabwe and become a river guide. During one routine

trip, he was leading a group of tourists down the Zambezi River when he encountered a surprise attack

from one of Africas most dangerous animals a bull hippo. The hippo almost overturned one of the

canoes, throwing another guide into the hazardous water. Templer jumped in to save his colleague, but

the huge hippo sprang up between them and swallowed Templers head, simultaneously pinning his

arms by his side with his razor-sharp teeth. The hippo carried him under water, and momentarily dazed,

all Templer could think was wow, its dark in here. Somehow, he unskewered his body, levered himselfout of the hippos jaws and swam to the surface but the frenzied attack wasnt over. The hippo mauled

Templer several more times, ripping his foot, severing his arm, breaking ribs and tearing holes in his

back and chest. After a seven hour operation which involved the amputation of the severed arm

Templer began the long road to recovery. Undeterred, he still leads safari trips, as well as being a coach,

public speaker and a key fundraiser for the childrens charity Make-a-Difference.