Have You Ever Almost Died

[BlackArcher101]

Only two moments come to mine that freaked me out.

#1) Working for a highway maintenance crew on Highway 23 near Vulcan. Summer time during Calgary stampede and we were spray patching the cracks (uses a mixture of oil and gravel). My duty that day was being 1 of 2 flagperson's, with myself being the main behind the crew, with the other a further distance in front. Essentially I'm the last line of defense the crew has. It's about 10am and traffic is fairly heavy due to people going to Calgary from the south. I started to notice one car was approaching pretty fast and I started to try and get it's attention (at about 500m away). At 400m, I started to look for an escape route for myself. At 300m, it looked like my efforts were not working so I ran into the middle of the lane to see if they noticed me then. I also radioed the crew to warn them. About 3-5 seconds later and nearly 100m from me, I started to panic, realizing if they started braking at that moment they would still pass me. Realizing the crew behind me did not heed my warning in time, I was the last person to prevent a deadly accident. So I did the only thing I could do. I waited until the last moment to see if they would finally notice me with the hope of them stopping in time. Alas, just before the car was to hit me, I jumped out of the way over the guardrail, but not before throwing my stop sign at her car. When the sign hit, she finally noticed and hit the brakes hard, barely stopping in time. I was shaken for at least an hour at how close I was, mere inches from being hit at 100+km/hr. This was one of a few close calls I had. Another included staring down a semi driver with a load of steel after he locked the trailer brakes and had his trailer and load hopping, straining against the tie down straps. I gave that guy a piece of my mind after he told me we didn't put up signs.

Oh, and to the 3 teenage girls in the cavalier... don't try to tell me it was our fault you didn't notice the orange signs, marked with the orange flags and orange pylons, as well as the gravel on a well traveled highway and the flashing lights on the work vehicles.

#2) In my early storm chasing days I thought I had gotten a flat. I was parked on a gravel road which was fairly elevated above the surrounding terrain. The storm had heavy lightning with frequent ground strikes. I went against common sense and stepped outside the truck to see if anything was amiss. After about 30 seconds, I could feel my hair standing up and got a real uneasy feeling. I ran back into the vehicle and not more than a few seconds after closing the door lightning struck my truck. Needless to say I sat there for a bit.

[La Flames Fan]

Closest I felt was this:

We'd been drinking at Rafter Six, waiting for the other guys to arrive at my step brother's birthday. Got bored and decided to head down to the little bar to see what was going on and hopped into my step brother's jeep.

He has a prosthetic on his right leg so drives the opposite way, gas on the left, brake on the right. I get in the front passenger seat, someone else driving, and two guys in the back. We head out and start driving down a gravel road, almost side swipe a tree and...

Instead of hitting the brakes coming up to the corner, he hits the gas, we fly down an embankment and time stood still as a gigantic tree got closer and closer to the jeep. We hit it head on, none of us were wearing seatbelts and I shudder to think what would have happened without airbags. A scratch on my finger was the worst of it and a tender nose.

I ALWAYS wear my seatbelt now, no matter the distance.

[Rhetts_the_Best]

I was camping once, and i was in my tent. I got out of the tent and like 3 seconds later when i was away form the tent, a tree snapped and a large portion of the tree landed on the tent!

I guess this is isn't even close to your stories, but i might not be here if my hot chocolate wasn't ready.

[icarus]

Originally Posted by Rhetts_the_Best

I was camping once, and i was in my tent. I got out of the tent and like 3 seconds later when i was away form the tent, a tree snapped and a large portion of the tree landed on the tent!

This story vaguely reminds me of another one I can add:

Was camping, took the horses out riding all day and when we got back two of tents had been knocked down and torn up by a bear. Who knows what would have happened if this had occurred at night while we were sleeping in the tents.

[OutOfTheCube]

Originally Posted by BlackArcher101

Alas, just before the car was to hit me, I jumped out of the way over the guardrail, but not before throwing my stop sign at her car

Haha, since you survived and nobody got hurt, this actually sounds kinda funny. She didn't realize to stop until you THREW the stop sign at her car. What world was she in?

[4X4]

Blackarcher's story reminds me of a time I almost saw someone die. I had just gotten hired by a dirt flipping company and had the pleasure of flagging. Our site was along 85 st out on the west side, and the quarry was on one side of the road and the dump spot was on the other.
Now, if you've ever worked in this industry, you know that one thing that can't happen is for the scrapers to stop. If those wheels aren't turning, the company is making no money. (a scraper is one of those humongous earth moving tractors that you see playing in the dirt before roads and houses are built)
So the scrapers need to cross 85th street and my job as well as the stupidest woman I've ever met, was to stop traffic when a scraper was coming so that the scraper could stay at top speed.

We were armed with stop signs, vests and folding chairs. It was pretty simple, really. Make damn sure that a car doesn't cross the path of the scrapers.
So this lazy bag of crap decided that she would no longer stand for the one or two cars that were actually approaching at the same time as a scraper, and took to merely turning her stop sign so that the car could see it.
What does a stop sign on the side of a road mean to you? Well, to most people, it means STOP, then GO! Which is exactly what a car did. Unfortunately, a 100 tonne machine was barrel assing down a blind track and was on a perfectly timed collission course with this car.

I saw this and threw my stop sign at the scraper so that the operator would see it. Luckily he did and slammed on the brakes. The guy in the car froze up as well and hit his brakes (in the path of the scraper). The machine ended up stopping about 2 feet shy of the car.

Both the car driver and the machine operator had to get out of their machines to take a breath. At first, the machine operator went berserk on the car driver until I pointed out that it was our fellow employee's fault.
I was pretty pissed off, both me and the machine operator tore a strip off this dumb broad. And then, one of the red trucks (supervisor) noticed a stopped machine and came to investigate. The chick got fired either that day or a day or two later. Can't remember.

But I do still clearly remember that little car cowering in the shadow of that scraper.

[habernac]

I chowed down on an entire bottle of Flintstone vitamins when I was 5. A trip to the ER and a good stomach pump cured that (You have to drink some liquid before you get your stomach pumped. I chose apple juice, which I still can't drink to this day).

I was flying down the front side of Nakiska on my mountain bike, took a corner wayyyy too fast and was brushing trees with my left side. I somehow steered back into the middle of the fire road. I sat on the ground with my heart beating at about 200 bpm for a little while.

Lost control on the Grant Macewan bridge in my rear wheel drive Hyundai in the winter time. Saw the grill of a large Brick Warehouse truck heading straight for me. I managed to correct and barely missed being hit.

[flamesdyehard]

I have a very sad story, in which I almost died. I thought twice about even writing it on here because it's a horrible moment in my life. New Years Eve 2002 my best friend and I were sledding (ski-doo) on a lake in Northern Ontario. We were ice fishing and a storm crept up on us a forced us to be out after dark. We usually cruised around the shoreline, but it took way longer that way, so we decided to go right across the lake. There was a good 10-12 inches of ice on the shoreline, so we were sure that it was sufficient even in the middle of the lake. I was following my friend across the lake and I will never forget the splashing sound of him going into the water and then me hitting the water as well. Fortunately for me I gunned the engine and was able to get onto a solid piece of ice a ways ahead. (For those sledders that hit open water the best thing to do is gun it, you will stay on top of the water). As soon as I came to my senses I went calling for my friend, It was pitch black outside, not even a moonlight. He never did make it, they found his body a few days later. It was the worst drive of my life driving the sled back to the cabin to tell my best friends wife we didn't know where he was. I looked and looked for him, and to this day I wonder if I could have done more for him, if I wouldn't have just jumped in and swam instead of saving myself, maybe we'd both still be here. Anyways, that's my story.

[RougeUnderoos]

The "post traumatic shaking knees" is quite a sensation.

Through 100% negligence of my own, I once got hit by a car while I was on my bike. I basically t-boned his front right wheel and over I went and thought "my helmet is hanging on the door knob at home". Luckily this guy had seen me coming and had stopped dead and I did hit the brakes but a little late. I basically rolled over his hood and landed on my feet just outside the driver's window, which he rolled down and said "are you okay" and I said "I guess I am". So I picked up my bike, he drove away and I actually laughed at the thing and then my knees started shaking so I walked my bike home on shaky legs.

Another time -- I am a hopeless handy-man. Useless and happy to admit it. But once I had a job as basically "handy-man's lackey" at a hotel. The guy was doing some electrical work and he said "take out that power outlet" and I said "I don't know how" and he said "you'll figure it out" and I said "I don't want to get electrocuted" and he said "the power is off, don't worry, it's easy". Sure enough I'm messing around down there with a screwdriver and everything starts to turn blue and before I even know what's happening my arm with the screwdriver flies out behind me and the screwdriver goes skittering across the floor. The boss-man notices this and says "what happened" and I said "I think I got a little bit electrocuted". Knees knocking again and I decided that sweeping the parking lot was more my speed. He didn't disagree. He did check that outlet though and there wasn't any power in it anymore.

[Displaced Flames fan]

Originally Posted by flamesdyehard

I have a very sad story, in which I almost died. I thought twice about even writing it on here because it's a horrible moment in my life. New Years Eve 2002 my best friend and I were sledding (ski-doo) on a lake in Northern Ontario. We were ice fishing and a storm crept up on us a forced us to be out after dark. We usually cruised around the shoreline, but it took way longer that way, so we decided to go right across the lake. There was a good 10-12 inches of ice on the shoreline, so we were sure that it was sufficient even in the middle of the lake. I was following my friend across the lake and I will never forget the splashing sound of him going into the water and then me hitting the water as well. Fortunately for me I gunned the engine and was able to get onto a solid piece of ice a ways ahead. (For those sledders that hit open water the best thing to do is gun it, you will stay on top of the water). As soon as I came to my senses I went calling for my friend, It was pitch black outside, not even a moonlight. He never did make it, they found his body a few days later. It was the worst drive of my life driving the sled back to the cabin to tell my best friends wife we didn't know where he was. I looked and looked for him, and to this day I wonder if I could have done more for him, if I wouldn't have just jumped in and swam instead of saving myself, maybe we'd both still be here. Anyways, that's my story.

That's horrible. I'm sorry for your loss. I think you did the right thing....if you had jumped in its pretty likely you'd be gone too.

[pope04]

Originally Posted by flamesdyehard

.......... to this day I wonder if I could have done more for him, if I wouldn't have just jumped in and swam instead of saving myself, maybe we'd both still be here. Anyways, that's my story.

There was nothing you could've done: If you jumped in, you'd both be gone. Sorry to hear about your loss.

[troutman]

I suppose I would have died if my appendix was not removed.

Drving late at night in Wisc, my friend fell asleep at the wheel. I guess hitting the gravel in the shouder woke him up, and we were okay.

Another time late at night in Nor Cal, we spun on some ice in a high mountain pass, doing a complete 360 into the ditch. We were okay.

Seriously, getting in a car is about the most dangerous thing humans do.

[Displaced Flames fan]

Well, I have a car accident story that happened to a family member but it is amazing enough to post here I think.

My wife's uncle and his buddy had been fighting fires in Glacier National Park late one summer...they were just out of high school....Might have been 1969..same year they had a really big fire up there. Anyway, they were on the East side of the park working and had to drive over Logan Pass (Going to the Sun Road) to get back to the Flathead. They were dog tired, fighting fires and all. My uncle was asleep and his buddy fell asleep and they went over the edge a short distance from the Logan Pass summit on the West side. If you've ever been over Going to the Sun you know what I am talking about. They should've been dead. One freaking tree sticking out of the side of the mountain and they hit it. Scratches only. I can barely look over the side of that road without wanting to lay down on the ground. That's a scary place.

[pope04]

Originally Posted by Displaced Flames fan

Well, I have a car accident story that happened to a family member but it is amazing enough to post here I think.

My wife's uncle and his buddy had been fighting fires in Glacier National Park late one summer...they were just out of high school....Might have been 1969..same year they had a really big fire up there. Anyway, they were on the East side of the park working and had to drive over Logan Pass (Going to the Sun Road) to get back to the Flathead. They were dog tired, fighting fires and all. My uncle was asleep and his buddy fell asleep and they went over the edge a short distance from the Logan Pass summit on the West side. If you've ever been over Going to the Sun you know what I am talking about. They should've been dead. One freaking tree sticking out of the side of the mountain and they hit it. Scratches only. I can barely look over the side of that road without wanting to lay down on the ground. That's a scary place.

Indeed.

My sister and I cycled Logan Pass back in the summer of '81. There's nothing as freaky as riding a bike around a twisty, super narrow road - the shoulder was practically nonexistent - in the mountains with a motorhome or a semi passing you. I had to keep looking at the ground immediately in front of me or I'd practically swoon with fear.

[icarus]

Originally Posted by Displaced Flames fan

Scratches only. I can barely look over the side of that road without wanting to lay down on the ground. That's a scary place.

That road is crazy. When I was about five we did a trip with extended family in my grandparents massive motorhome. At that time there was pretty much no guardrail on the edge. With a motorhome that size, and the motorists going the other direction moving toward the median to avoid scraping the rock wall, we were ridiculously close to the edge. Looking out the window of the motorhome it was straight down. My mom had to go hide in the bathroom she was so scared.

I can't believe someone went over the edge of that and survived. That is the scariest road I have ever been on.

[Dan02]

Originally Posted by troutman

Seriously, getting in a car is about the most dangerous thing humans do.

1 in 85 people will die in one.

[icarus]

Originally Posted by Dan02

1 in 85 people will die in one.

So if I know roughly 1000 people, and 3 of them have already died in car accidents that means that about 8 of the people I know will die in a car accident at some point? Yikes.

[RougeUnderoos]

I've been over (through?) Logan's Pass a couple times but I remember sort of a waist high wall made out of rocks along most of it. I'm kind of a chicken and I would have been pretty spooked if it was just a cliff on the side of the road but I don't remember being too scared at all. This was more than 20 years ago

[redforever]

Originally Posted by RougeUnderoos

I've been over (through?) Logan's Pass a couple times but I remember sort of a waist high wall made out of rocks along most of it. I'm kind of a chicken and I would have been pretty spooked if it was just a cliff on the side of the road but I don't remember being too scared at all. This was more than 20 years ago

Maybe knee heighth, certainly not waist.

[Resolute 14]

Excluding the threat of almost dying being self-inflicted, the closest I've come was, like most others, in a car.

Driving between Dawson Creek and Fort St. John in the winter, I came across a nasty hill near Pouce Coupe that was icy as heck, going downhill, turning left and banked. Doing about 65 in a 100 zone, I still slid onto the oncoming lane as a semi was coming up the hill the other way. I managed to slide myself back about 5 feet before I would have hit the truck, but safe to say, I was white knuckling it the rest of the day.