Alastair Cass was having a miserable afternoon watching football. His beloved Arsenal were losing 3–0 to Brighton, and he’d finally had enough. The 40-year-old switched off the television and walked outside toward one of the barns on his property in Devon, England. As he crossed the yard, he heard a strange noise coming from somewhere … Read more
Jonah Johnson was flying a plane full of skydivers over Wisconsin when he noticed another aircraft disappear behind a line of trees. Everyone watched, expecting the little white plane to climb back into view. It never did. Johnson circled around and spotted a crashed aircraft in a cornfield below. There were four people aboard, and … Read more
Benita Karo was filming the waves along a beach in Oceanside, California, when she noticed a surfer walking out of the water with his board. A huge wave was building behind him, and he had no idea it was coming. She watched it hit him and throw him straight into the rocks. The impact was … Read more
By the time Ben Busboom-Miller reached the car, most of it was already underwater. He could still make out part of the roof, but somewhere inside was a 90-year-old woman who couldn’t get out. Someone helping from shore suggested grabbing a rock. Ben found one and started pounding on a window, trying to break through … Read more
Michael Brandon Hill walked into Ronald E. McNair Discovery Learning Academy carrying an assault-style rifle and 498 rounds of ammunition. Within minutes, shots had been fired, police were outside, and hundreds of children were locked down inside the elementary school. In the front office sat Antoinette Tuff, the school bookkeeper, with no weapon, no police training and no hostage-negotiation experience.
Jan Gilar stepped onto a patch of snow high in the Swiss Alps, and the ground suddenly disappeared beneath his feet. He fell through the ice into a deep crevasse. His shoulder was injured, freezing water was dripping around him, and he couldn’t climb back to the surface. Somewhere above him, his little Chihuahua, Filip, … Read more