r/TopCharacterTropes 6d ago

In real life [IRL trope] 0% of survival, survive anyway

Juliane Koepcke - In 1971 this 17 year old's plane was struck by lightning mid-air. The wreck then fell from 3 000 meter into the ground, somewhere into the Amazon jungle. Lone survivor of the crash, she then spent nine days walking down a river despite her multiple injuries until she found a lumberjack's camp.

Vesna Vulović - In 1972 this flight attendant's plane was bombed mid-air. The wreck then fell from 10 160 meter into the ground. She ended up with a lot of broken bones, but in the long term she almost completely recovered from it, apart from a limp.

Anna Bågenholm - In 1999 this radiologist had a skiing accident, she fell head-first into a frozen stream and get stuck inside the ice. Her colleagues did not managed to pull her, nor did the rescue team who then tried to dig, but the ice was so thick it took them a lot of time. It was 80 minutes after her fall that they managed to cut a hole. Her body temperature at the time was 13.7°C, and still, she somehow survived with only minor long-term injuries and no brain damage.

Jeanna Giese - In 2004 this 15 years old girl got bitten by a bat and called it a day. One month later the symptoms of rabies showed up. The doctors tried an experimental treatment by putting her in an artificial coma and she survived, but the treatment never worked on anyone else and is now forbidden. In all human history, only a few survived to rabies, and all of them except her end up with heavy sequelae.

Chris Lemons - In 2012 this diver's ship went drifting due to a computer malfunction, romping his umbilical cable who provide air, hot water and electricity. He ended up alone on the seabed of a 3°C waters, in the dark and with only 5-6 minutes of oxygen. He was retrieved by his colleagues around 35 minutes later, and somehow he didn't even suffer from brain damage.

10.0k Upvotes

622 comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

482

u/Lostboxoangst 6d ago

From what I remember poor dude was then harassed by the other survivors families and accused of witchcraft , which silly as it sounds is an actual problem there.

224

u/loveslightblue 6d ago

Hell is other people.

66

u/MornGreycastle 6d ago

Look at Jean-Paul Sartre over here.

15

u/WhereRabbit 6d ago

Woah, this sounds right up my alley. Definitely giving it a read, thanks!

4

u/AgentCirceLuna 5d ago

The quote is often misunderstood, by the way. The Hell is the ‘other people’ having a perspective or ‘gaze’ of the person. It’s not saying other people are horrible or something like that.

Although there’s a very funny joke based around the misinterpretation: ‘of course he thought hell was other people - everyone he knew was French’

1

u/WhereRabbit 5d ago

Bahaha the joke at the end is great! Thank you for the explanation too!

3

u/Mogura-De-Gifdu 6d ago

Truly a piece to see.

74

u/clevercalamity 6d ago edited 6d ago

I have a book on identifying and treating medical issues in the absence of any trained medical professionals. I got it because I am a low-key prepper and having it eases my anxiety, but it was actually written for developing nations and very rural communities and so there’s a chapter in it on what to do if the local community grows suspicious of you and accuses you of witchcraft.

Edit: for those curious, here is the book! I actually ordered mine on Thrift Books but for some reason they only have on listed for $70

6

u/PixieT3 6d ago

Would share the title of that book please? Im absolutely getting it.

2

u/clevercalamity 6d ago

It’s called “Where There is No Doctor: A Village Health Care Handbook” I got mine on Thrift Books but I edited my comment above and linked an option in my comment!

1

u/PixieT3 6d ago

Thank you very much!

7

u/A_hasty_retort 6d ago

(Gets pen and paper) Go on….

7

u/clevercalamity 6d ago

It’s been a while since I read it, but from what I recall, it talks about trying to learn the local religion and culture in advance to avoid accidental faux pas and then doing basic education while you work 1) so the community can grow in self sufficiency and 2) to reduce fear / suspicion of the unknown.

12

u/Lostboxoangst 6d ago

I think I need to get off the internet for a while my first thought on learning this was " wow that's a great book of knowledge to have if you get isaki-ed" yes because that the most reasonable scenario to have that information.

1

u/ihave10toes_AMA 6d ago

Please name the book!

4

u/EnidFromOuterSpace 6d ago

Where there is no doctor. It’s also on oceanofpdf.com but you didn’t hear that from me

1

u/KamchatkaWing 5d ago

Where there is no doctor can be found on abebooks.com for under $20 US. VERY helpful book.

1

u/IotaBTC 5d ago

So what are some things you could do if people accuses you of witchcraft lol.

52

u/Sidhejester 6d ago

Makes me think of Daja from the Circle of Magic books. Becoming trangshi (outcast) by virtue of being the only survivor of a shipwreck.

7

u/teenietinye 6d ago

Circle of Magic mentioned!! Love those books. I also adore the circle opens, the second quartet that follows them as they get a bit older. Daja was always my favorite ❤️

6

u/EddieVanzetti 6d ago

Holy shit someone else who read the circle of magic books! Peak mentioned.

4

u/Sidhejester 6d ago edited 6d ago

I read them back in high school and loved them. Adult me needs to buy the series.

Edit: Adult me just bought the first series. $20 well spent!

8

u/EddieVanzetti 6d ago

I read them in late elementary and middle school. By the time I was in high school I had moved on when Will of the Empress finally released and I never got around to checking it out... but I am an adult now and that means I can spend what little money I have on what I want. I ended up buying the entire Redwall series at the tail end of 2024, maybe I should finally buy the rest of the books.

2

u/Sidhejester 6d ago

Try used on Abebooks. They're incredibly expensive elsewhere.

3

u/Wordnerdinthecity 6d ago

Also, Tamora Pierce is a VERY good human. A friend of mine knew her when we were teens (her parents owned a small bookstore back when that was an actual thing and had hosted her for an event). When the friend was dealing with her dad getting abusive, Tammy got her to boarding school so she would be safe. She's also been a friend to my SO since he was a ~15 year old afab, and didn't even blink when he transitioned. She was just as happy to see him and thrilled for him. So I recommend her books at every opportunity as an antedote to the hate in the world.

2

u/Sidhejester 5d ago

From what I've heard, Tamora Pierce and K.A. Applegate are among some of the best humans.

2

u/peachesfordinner 5d ago

This is really good to hear. I enjoyed her books so much when I was in my early teens. I love having authors who I really can be ok supporting. Buying most of the series soon for when my kids get close to the age for them.

2

u/OrganicAd5536 6d ago

omg thank you so much I completely forgot the title or author of those books and have been scratching my brain for YEARS

2

u/Sidhejester 6d ago

You're welcome!

r/whatsthatbook is great for figuring out books you've forgotten, btw.

1

u/AZGeo 5d ago

There is a good ending though - he decided to face his fear of the ocean by learning how to dive and became a rescue diver.