How Close Have You Come to Death?

[TinyEvel]

Spinning off the car surfing teen thread...

What’s your story of the closest you’ve come to dieing?

Between all of us I’m sure there’s a decent mix from Darwin-award candidate behavior to emergency quadruple bypass patients.

Also: take a moment to be grateful to be alive. Every day is a gift.

[ROYC75]

Originally Posted by tooge

I was run over by a car. Guy was a drunk driver. He rear ended me. I got my pen and paper to go get his insurance information and the mother****er actually started chasing me in his car. I tried running for a while but 1. quickly ran out of energy, and 2. partly because I was out of energy, I tripped on a curb and fell into the street after he had chased me into a grass field for a bit. I looked up and there was his front bumper about 7 or 8 feet away and hauling ass right at me. I put my hands up, and the next thing I knew, I was flying through the air spinning. I landed 20 feet away. I was dazed, looked up again and he was almost on top of me. I covered up and he ran me over. The front tire went over my shoulder and grazed my neck, leaving a huge strawberry on my neck and totally destroying my shoulder joint and muscles. That rolled me over, and the rear tire went over my lower back, and road grated me into the concrete. Finally, as my arm flailed around, the rear bumper took about a 3 ounce hunk of my left forearm out. Fortunately, a buddy that was with me got his plate number and the cops got him and the hunk of meat was still on his bumper so he was screwed. several shoulder surgeries later, i'm good. Close call thought

Glad your with us!

[Coyote]

Originally Posted by mac459

2007 I was blown from the gunners hatch through a wall from an IED blast. ****ed my shoulder up, broke a few ribs, broke my ankle, some shrapnel wounds.

Couple years later, I caught six AK rounds to my chest plate that is designed to take 3 before not being worth a shit. Also had a few sniper shots pass close enough to my head to feel the heat and pressure from the rounds on my face.

Couple years later, survived a helicopter smashing into the ground like a lawn dart. Broken back from that.

Couple of years later, was blown off the side of a mountain from an RPG, during an ambush. Ended up with broken bones, blown out knee and few other things. That lead to my retirement.

I miss the **** out of my old job.

Yeah. Thank you. I was the “bridge” generation between the Vietnam guys that trained me and likely you and yours (1977-2009 active then turned Pentagon bureaucrat), my first Skipper referred to his PHs as “Vietnamese shooting badges”

[eDave]

Should have died on my way back from NWMSU one night from Bedford, IA.

Me and a friend were there drinking then headed home, passing a bottle of Mailbu Rum. He had a nice Camaro and we were going WAY fast. Like close to 100 but I'm trying not to embellish.

A turn came and we spun off the road, through a fence, and into a field. Not once rolling or anything. Just scooting and spinning.

We flagged down a truck driver and got back to Maryville. Had the car towed next day with minimal damage.

25 or so years later, we reconnected and I asked him if he ever thought of that night. He said "all the time".

So do I.

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Another occasion was also in college and more of an "I should have been there" kind of thing. My Gladstone friends all went to CMSU, I went to NWMSU. We were really tight. Well they were all back in KC one weekend and wanted me to come down too. I couldn't. That night, the car I would have surely been in, driven by my best friend, plowed into another on their way back from Smithville. I'm guessing 85-86 timeframe. Killing one of my friends and really messing up my best friend because he killed his friend.

That one dicks with me all the time.

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Most recent is when I broke up with my Mexican FG.

Yikes.

[FAX]

In my case, a little too close for comfort. I've had several close calls, actually.

But probably the most significant near-death experience occurred when I was injected with a substance at UCLA hospital that sent me into severe shock. The main problem was that the nurse who administered the injection walked out of the room afterward so she didn't see my reaction. Thankfully, a friend of mine was with me at the time.

Apparently, my friend saw me convulse and ran into the hallway to call for help. According to the doctors who provided the after-action report, I had stopped breathing and my heartbeat had ceased for a couple of minutes before they used the crash cart (I was paddled for the first time since high school) and injected me with adrenalin and ... something else ...

But, unfortunately for my enemies, I survived.

FAX

[In58men]

Originally Posted by scho63

2006 I would up in the hospital after a horrific event and the doctor said I was very lucky to be alive. Worst period of my life.

I prefer not to elaborate.....

Clearly drugs.

[Iowanian]

Probably closer than I know more times than I know.

[DJ's left nut]

Originally Posted by chinaski

My buddy got shot in the back of the head in Iraq, his first week in country. Obviously it wasn't a front to back shot, but it took a sizeable chunk out of his skull. He has, more or less, made a full recovery, despite some ongoing memory problems. Interestingly enough, the incident was caught on camera. Scary shit.

Thanks for your service!

I have a buddy who was a Bradley commander and his gunner was killed by a sniper right next to him. They were both up out of the turret and bang, his gunner took the hit. They found a scope cam sort of video of it on one of those weird al jazeera type listservs or whatever and he said the triggerman brought the reticle right across him before he settled on his gunner and fired.

Shook him up something awful for a bit. It truly was mere chance that the sniper decided that he wanted the gunner and not the officer that day.

I'd have had a damn hard time putting my head up again were I him. Testament to the training that he was back out there the instant they tabbed him. I can't even imagine how that felt.

[DeepPurple]

In 1975 my first wife and I each bought new Kawasaki street bikes. She had never driven a bike before, but she picked it up quick. The first day she wanted to ride it to her job at Albertson in St. Petersburg, about a ten mile ride. I rode with her and she got there OK. I went back down to ride home with her at 4pm rush hour. We were about halfway home and a car turned left behind me and in front of her. She ran into the side of the car, but went in at the wheel well and was going only about 25mph. Very little damage to the bike and her.

About a week later, her bike is fixed and were out riding around in Largo, north of St. Pete, we're on a 4 lane divided road going 55mph and I'm about a 1/4 mile ahead. We enter a big curve and as I lean left into the turn I lose sight of her in the mirror, and a car was in the left turn lane. I looked back over my left shoulder to see her, and when I look back my front wheel is hitting the curb. I rolled off the back of the bike into the dirt and concrete medium and was skinned up on both legs and arms but no broken bones. I had on shorts and a t-shirt when didn't help. Fortunately I had on a helmet with a full face shield which did help since and all the snaps on the shield were totally flat.

I had some incidents where those around me got killed. In 1970 I was stationed in Korea in the DMZ and it was a usual night, I was playing cards with the guys at the coffee shop. The next day, the SSgt that was playing at my table went hunting with the Colonel in one of Hueys, just imagine Mash and it's for real. The Sgt stepped on a land mine that was planted 20 years earlier during the Korean War and was killed.

March 1977 I was working as a air traffic controller at St. Petersburg/Clearwater Control Tower and I was the tower controller for all 3 intersecting runways. I had departures leaving on Rwy 35R and 35L, I had full stops on Rwy 9 and I had touch & goes on Rwy 22. The touch & goes were mostly students flying Grumman Americans out of Nat'l Aviation Academy. I had 4 Grumman in right traffic on Rwy 22 and I saw one turn base too early and was at about 900' on final and directly above the aircraft he was following. I could of sent him around but since he was still at pattern height and there wasn't anyone on downwind, I told him he was overtaking his traffic and to make a right 360 and re-enter on final. I looked back at my other traffic on Rwys 9 & 35 and I heard an ELT (Emergency Locator Transmitter) go off. This happens a lot, radio shops are always testing them, but it did get my attention, so I looked back at final for Rwy 4 and I didn't see the aircraft that should of been rolling out of his 360 by now. I had sheriff helicopter inbound, so I asked him if he could go down south and look around for the aircraft.

My union rep relieved me from the position and I went over to the back of the tower and was looking with binoculars for the aircraft when the phone rang. I picked it up and the voice said, "This is Arch Deal of Channel 8 Reports, Live on the Air, what information can you give us about the aircraft that just crashed on 49th Street." I grew up in St. Pete, and knew Arch Deal since I was a kid, and now he's on the phone telling me this aircraft has crashed. I told him, no comment, and hung up. Both pilots, the student and the Vietnam Vet former Army helicopter pilot were both killed.

About a year later in May 1978 I was working in Pensacola Approach Control (radar controller). Our ILS Runway was closed for repaving and we had no instrument landing available other than a controller instructed Surveillance Approach to Rwy 9/27. We had heavy thunderstorms coming through the area and National 193 from Tampa was inbound and wanted a surveillance approach. My team was working that night, the controller next to me was handling final approach. Most of us never do surveillance approaches, or at least not since our military days. It's where you give detailed instructions to the pilot and he follows those instructions until he sees the runway. His altitude is determined by already published altitudes, the MDA for this approach to Rwy 27 was 520 feet. Runway 27 final is over Pensacola Bay for about 5 miles with the last mile over houses and the shoreline is rather step for Florida, it's like California with a 100' cliff. Around two mile final the pilots mistook a barge and it's lights in the bay for the runway, and with gear and flaps down made a perfect landing on the water. Fortunately only 3 people died, they drown but the barge was able to pick up most of the survivors. The aircraft did not break up and was sold about a month later for a $1 million dollars and floated up and taken away.

Had crash happened a mile later, it would of been a total disaster.

[JakeF]

I was a crazy teen.

Street drag racing, totaled 4 cars before I was 22yrs old.

Fights, knives, guns. I almost died twice, for real.

Life flight and emergency ICU surgeons were my friends.

[Rain Man]

Originally Posted by In58men

Clearly drugs.

I was assuming some sort of David Carradine scenario.

[smithandrew051]

I was working overnights full time during my last semester at KU. I worked off of Barry Road and 169 in KCMO while living in Lawrence. Typically, I averaged about an hour of sleep a night between Friday and Wednesday. On my days off from work, I would sleep 15+ hours.

On my nightly trip along 435 N to 152, I fell asleep once. It wasn’t like I drifted off for a second, I completely passed out.

My car swerved off the road and those concrete ruffles woke me up. I’m so lucky there was no one around me. Had those not woken me up, I definitely would’ve died that night.

I still get nervous when I think about it.

[ROYC75]

Darn, I had forgotten one, I was driving a 10 wheel milk tanker on day, say 1977, maybe 1978? I had left a farm just south of Butler Mo.and as I got on the asphalt, I had just gotten the truck up to about 40 MPH around a long winding curve. Not sure about now, but back in the day when you had a state highway that started with a " letter of the alphabet " you better keep all wheels up on the blacktop.

This lady was coming around a curve too fast, she was in part of my lane. As she got closer I was expecting her to get it under control ( bad mistake, never assume ). This didn't happen, then I could see kids in the car. As I said, I was on a Mo. Hwy ( Letter) on my way toward US 71. and no shoulder to get over on. I had about 5/8 of a tank full of milk on. I got over as far as I could, giving her as much room as possible. I didn't want to let my right side steering tire/duals drop off the edge of the road.

Well, it happened, she swerved to the right as my tires dropped off on my right. It was about a 6-8" drop off and I'm holding the truck on the edge, holding on for dear life and then I see it, a "BIGGER DROP OFF " I'm talking like a good 12" more, knowing I'm gone if I hit that part, I pulled it hard left. Yikes, Now I have that milk shifting right, now left with momentum!

I recover with the truck heading towards the left ditch at about a 10 O clock position. OK, I'm going to slam on the air brakes, try to lock this bitch up. Well, before I could do that, the milk is taking a death roll to the left. That was it, over, and over. A total of 2.5 turns rolling over, landing on the driver side. Not wearing a seat belt was/was not a mistake, you can tell me later. You see in the front seat and floor board of that truck, 3-20 ton jacks, a 150 lbs tool box that had enough tools to do truck repairs along the road,a a big hammer and pry bars for breaking down split rims and a 30' coiled up air hose, as well as 4 or 5 small blocks for the jacks/tire repairs. All of this heavy stuff that could crush the brain.

All I had wrong was much bruising and about 60 stitches in 2 places. Either the tool box, 1 of the 20T jacks, hammer, blocks or bar could have seriously hurt or killed me.

Lucky or God had a plan for me!

[ROYC75]

Originally Posted by Iowanian

Probably closer than I know more times than I know.

I'm sure of this, it's something we can all relate to.

[Strongside]

I died for 30 seconds when the Chiefs traded up to draft Mahomes.

[Pablo]

A bunch of really, really dumb shit driving as a kid. But the closest I've ever been to death is a night of drinking capped off by doming pain killers. Buddy bought a bunch of 100mg morphine from a dude dying of cancer. Me, my brother and two of my buddies decided we wanted to really party after we got home from the bar. Decided that eating them wasn't good enough for some pros like ourselves. Ended up lying in bed unable to move or function; gasping for air like a fish and telling myself to breathe while praying for hours.

I fell asleep at some point not knowing if I was really gonna wake up.