We are used to scenes in which heroes narrowly escape death, mainly from action movies. The stories of individuals from different parts of the world prove that immortality also exists in real life.
Which 10 people miraculously outwitted death in their lifetime?
10. Dionisio Pulido – the man who found a volcano in his backyard
On February 20, Dionisio Pulido, a resident of Paricutino, Mexico, noticed a small hill that appeared out of nowhere in the immediate vicinity of his house. It soon turned out to be a volcano. The ash cloud reached a height of 50 meters in the next 24 hours. The volcano, which started spewing lava in June of that year, was active until 1952. The villagers had to be evacuated, and before leaving for his property, Dionisio nailed a sign saying "This volcano is owned and controlled by Dionisio Pulida".
9. Aron Ralston – 127 hours under a rock
Aron Ralston hiked Blue John Canyon in Utah in 2003. His adventure quickly turned into a nightmare. While climbing, a rock fell on him, trapping his hand. Aaron's hand remained stuck under the rock for 5 days. He got out of the trap by cutting off his right hand in the middle of the forearm with a knife and pliers. After binding his hand, he lowered himself into the chasm with a rope and made his way to the valley.
8. Vesna Vulović – a woman who survived a fall from a height of 10,000 meters
On January 26, 1972, stewardess Vesna Vulović was performing her job for Yugoslav Airlines on a flight from Copenhagen to Belgrade. The plane exploded at an altitude of 10 km. When the rescuers arrived at the scene of the accident, they found that one of the victims had survived the crash. Vesna, who lost a huge amount of blood, spent the first three days in the hospital in a coma due to severe injuries, but later recovered. She entered the Guinness Book of Records as the person who survived a fall from the highest height without using a parachute.
7. Anna Bagenholm - return to the living
On May 20, 1999, 29-year-old doctor Anna Bagenholm went skiing in the Norwegian mountains. When her ski slipped, she lost control and drove into an icy stream. Unfortunately, the ice could not support her weight. Anna fell into the icy cold water, from which she was rescued only after 80 minutes. Despite the fact that her body had already stopped working due to the extremely low body temperature, she miraculously woke up after ten days in the hospital. Her heart stopped for more than 2 hours while her body temperature dropped as low as 13.7 ºC.
6. Tsutomu Yamaguchi – survived two nuclear attacks
On August 6, 1945, Tsutomo Yamaguchi was in a hurry on a business visit to Hiroshima, which he planned to leave that day. His plans were thwarted by the Americans, who dropped the Deček bomb on the Japanese city. This caused the death of approximately 140 thousand people. Tsutomo survived the attack, but suffered some burns and damage to his eardrums, as well as being temporarily blinded. He decided to return to Nagasaki, where his wife and son were waiting for him. Just 3 days later, a new shock followed in the form of the Debeluh atomic bomb, which wiped the city off the map. Despite being permanently deaf in his left ear and suffering from symptoms of radiation-related illness, he lived to be 93 years old. He died of stomach cancer.
5. Roy Sullivan - The Man Who Attracts Lightning
Forest ranger Roy Sullivan was struck by lightning 7 times in 1942, 1969, 1970, 1972, 1973, 1976 and 1977. With this achievement, he managed to enter the Guinness Book of Records, where he is described as the only man who attracts lightning. The hardy resident of Virginia could not avoid injuries. Among other things, he lost a toe, eyebrow and hair, and at the same time he burned his legs, shoulder, chest and stomach.
4. Anatoli Bugorski – victim of the proton beam
Anatoli Bugorski had an interesting accident in 1978 when he was hit in the head by a proton beam. A Russian physicist described it as a light that was brighter than anything he had seen before. He did not feel any pain during the collision, but many assumed that he would die as a result of the accident. This did not happen, but Bugorski became deaf in his left ear. In the rest of his life, he also had to deal with paralysis of the muscles on the left side of his face.
3. Ewa Wisnierska - a paraglider who was swept away by a storm
Experienced paraglider Ewa Wisnierska was sucked in by a terrifying storm during an adventure she wanted to perform in Australia. She found herself in a vortex that took her to a height of around 10,000 meters at a speed of 80 kilometers per hour. Due to lack of oxygen at extremely high altitude, she passed out for almost an hour. Doctors are of the opinion that this is what helped her survive and land safely on Earth. In this way, there was a slowing down of the heartbeat and the functioning of body functions.
2. Joe Simpson - Immense strength and stubborn will
Joe Simpson broke his leg while climbing in the Peruvian Andes, where he was accompanied by Simon Yates. Yates wanted to get his friend to safety with the help of a rope. Since it was not long enough, he was faced with a difficult decision. He had to cut the rope, because that was the only way he could survive. Miraculously, Joe landed on the ledge with no further injuries. Because he did not want to die, thanks to his strong will, he crawled to the camp, about 10 kilometers away, after 4 days. Simon was waiting for him there.
1. Louis Zamperini – Unyielding
Louis Zamperini's story inspired the movie Unbroken (2014), directed by Angelina Jolie. The American of Italian origin competed in the 5,000 meters at the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin. At the outbreak of World War II, he was drafted into the army and crashed a bomber over the Pacific. After an agonizing seven weeks at sea, he fell into the hands of the Japanese or the sadistic Sergeant Mutsuhiro Watanabe. Zamperini survived the war and was finally freed in 1945.
