Buzz
Standing on the edge of Central Park Tower in New York, the view below seems enough to convince anyone that falling from such a height would be certain death. Dropping 1500 feet (457 meters) in just 12 seconds, reaching speeds of 150 to 200 mph (241 to 322 km/h), seems impossible to survive. But, surprisingly, there are always exceptions that show that survival, though highly improbable, is never truly impossible.
While it may seem unfathomable that someone could survive a fall from over 1500 feet, it's more common than you'd think. Here are 10 more incredible stories of individuals who survived such a dramatic plunge.
10. Christine McKenzie
Christine McKenzie, a seasoned skydiver from South Africa, was completing her 112th jump in Johannesburg in 2004. Attempting a sitting position jump for the first time, she rapidly gained speed during freefall. From 11,000 feet (3,353 meters), she held the position until around 6,000 feet (1,828 meters), at which point she flattened out and deployed her parachute as usual. But this time, something was off, and Christine quickly realized that something had gone terribly wrong.
The first sign that something was wrong was that Christine hadn’t slowed down. Looking up, she couldn’t see her life-saving canopy. Realizing her main parachute had failed to open, she quickly deployed her reserve chute and cut away the malfunctioning main, but the two parachutes became tangled. The situation worsened as critical lines snapped, sending her into a wild, uncontrollable spin.
As Christine hurtled toward the ground, her mind raced with thoughts of her family and upcoming wedding. But the next terrifying realization was that she was on a collision course with live power lines. While this seemed like an unfortunate twist, it likely saved her life by breaking her fall. She hit the power lines, suffering a broken pelvis and severe bruising but stayed conscious. A passerby saw her descent, stopped his truck, and called for an ambulance, ensuring she got the help she needed.
Despite the trauma, Christine made a full recovery. However, she did ask her fiancé to reconsider their honeymoon plans, opting for something more conventional and far less terrifying than their initial plans to go skydiving and cage-diving with great white sharks.
9. Emma Carey
Emma recalled the early moments of her freefall as being remarkably serene, with a stunning view of the mountains below. However, when her parachute deployed, things started to go wrong. She quickly realized she hadn’t slowed down and began calling out to her instructor, who was strapped to her back, to check if everything was okay.
When Emma received no reply, she initially assumed that the howl of the wind was drowning out her voice. However, as panic set in, she craned her neck to look up and was horrified to discover that not only had neither the main parachute nor the reserve chute deployed correctly, but the tangled lines had wrapped around the instructor’s neck, choking him into unconsciousness.
Fully aware of the gravity of her situation but unsure of how to act, Emma and her unconscious instructor plummeted toward the earth. In the final seconds, Emma’s body broke his fall, but she was left with severe injuries—shattered pelvis, a broken back, sacrum, and jaw, and the loss of most of her teeth. Despite the excruciating pain, she remained conscious as her mouth filled with blood, her instructor still strapped to her, pinning her to the ground.
Despite doctors telling her she would never walk again, Emma defied expectations with an extraordinary recovery. Since the accident, she has become a sensation on social media. With intense physiotherapy, she managed to regain the ability to walk, though she has lost all sensation in her lower body and continues to face ongoing medical challenges as a result of her injuries.
8. Craig Stapleton
At 51, Craig Stapleton was an experienced skydiver when he decided to jump from 8,000 feet (2,438 meters) to perform a stunt with an American flag. Everything went as planned until Craig’s leg became stuck, causing him to spin uncontrollably toward the ground. He deployed his backup parachute, but the tangled ropes only made matters worse, and the malfunctioning chute led Craig to believe his death was imminent.
Fortunately, despite the two parachutes failing, they managed to slow his descent to about 30 mph (48 km/h) before he crashed into a freshly ploughed vineyard at what was described as an optimal angle. These combined factors ultimately saved his life, as Craig only suffered a dislocated shoulder along with some minor bumps and bruises from the fall. The entire event was captured on video by a terrified cameraman, who was helpless to intervene.
7. Elijah Arranz
At just 14 years old, Elijah Arranz took part in his first skydive, a tandem jump where he and 44-year-old instructor Tony Rokov jumped from a plane at around 5,000 feet (1,524 meters). Everything seemed to be going smoothly until Tony deployed the main parachute. As with every other jump Tony had done, they began their descent safely, enjoying the view. Just 66 feet (20 meters) from landing, a sudden gust of wind collapsed their parachute, causing them to plummet toward the ground at an alarming speed.
In tandem jumps, the instructor is strapped to the back of the less experienced jumper, enabling them to fix any issues with the ropes or the canopy if needed. However, on that fateful day, Tony's actions went far beyond the call of duty, displaying heroism that transcended what anyone could expect, no matter the inherent risks of the job.
As the main parachute collapsed and sent them plummeting toward the earth, Tony quickly wrapped his body around Elijah, using himself as a cushion to absorb the impact of the fall. This incredible act of selflessness and bravery is believed to have been the only reason Elijah survived, though it ultimately may have contributed to or even caused Tony’s tragic death.
Elijah sustained a range of severe injuries from the crash, which left him using a wheelchair and struggling with speech for many years. However, he has made an extraordinary recovery, which he attributes to both his dedicated physiotherapy sessions and the profound sense of gratitude he feels toward the courageous individual who saved his life.
6. Carol Murray Rodriguez
In September 1997, 24-year-old Carol Murray Rodriguez from Nova Scotia, having completed just four hours of skydiving training, was permitted to jump solo from a plane at an altitude of approximately 3,200 feet (975 meters). She had barely begun her descent when, after just a second or two, a gust of wind caused her parachute to collapse, setting her into a spin, as captured by a video taken from below.
As with many others on this list, Carol deployed her reserve chute after releasing the main one, resulting in a tangled mess of lines and fabric. This chaotic entanglement sent her plummeting toward the earth at more than 56 mph (90 km/h), leading to her crashing into the front yard of an older woman’s house.
Carol endured a series of catastrophic injuries, including a broken femur, a punctured lung, a fractured pelvis, and broken ribs. However, her most severe injury was a compound fracture to her right femur, where the bone pierced through her thigh muscle and drove almost 4 inches (10 centimeters) into the ground.
Carol has undergone more than 25 surgeries since her accident, and continues to deal with the ongoing effects of her injuries. Despite the immense challenges she faces, watching the video may leave you questioning how she even survived the ordeal, emphasizing just how incredibly fortunate she truly is.
5. Victoria Cilliers
This list thus far has focused on skydiving accidents, which some might argue are an unfortunate but inevitable aspect of such a dangerous sport. While there’s some truth to this, it’s important to note that not every person involved in a skydiving accident is simply a victim of misfortune or poor judgment.
In April 2015, Victoria Cilliers, an experienced skydiving instructor, had been grounded for nearly a year due to her pregnancy and recent childbirth. As a token of appreciation for her sacrifices, her husband Emile decided to treat her to a parachute jump at the Netheravon Airfield in Wiltshire, England.
On the day of the jump, the weather was less than ideal, and after several delays, Victoria and 11 others chose to perform a low-altitude jump from 4,000 feet (1,219 meters), as cloud cover prevented jumps from higher altitudes. Emile brought their infant and three-year-old daughter to watch the jump safely from the ground.
The typical strategy for a low-altitude jump is to deploy the parachute almost immediately after exiting the plane. However, as soon as Victoria jumped, it became evident that something had gone terribly wrong. Her parachute failed to open, and she plummeted toward the earth at an alarming speed, ultimately crashing into a freshly plowed field at over 60 mph (96 km/h).
The first responders who arrived at the scene expected to find Victoria lifeless. Surprisingly, though she had sustained a broken spine, shattered pelvis, and fractured ribs, she was still clinging to life. What also startled the rescue team was the condition of her parachute at the crash site. It was strangely tangled on one side, and it appeared to be missing the soft links that should have connected the main parachute to the harness, leaving them baffled.
After a two-year investigation, it was revealed that Victoria's husband, Emile, had deliberately sabotaged her parachute the day before the jump. As a result, he was charged with attempted murder. Further inquiry uncovered that just one week earlier, he had tried to kill her by leaving the gas on, endangering the lives of the entire family.
Emile was sentenced to life imprisonment, though in TV interviews following the trial, Victoria stated that she could not fully accept the verdict. This was despite strong evidence showing her husband had been involved in two affairs, made substantial contributions to her life insurance policy, and accumulated over $30,000 in debts. Eventually, Victoria came to terms with the realization that her husband had indeed tried to take her life.
4. Nicholas Alkemade
Up until now, everyone on this list has chosen to jump from a plane, seemingly confident in their abilities and trusting in those around them to take part in an adventure that some would label exhilarating, while others might deem reckless. However, Nicholas Alkemade was not in either of these categories when he found himself serving as a rear gunner on an RAF Lancaster Bomber during World War II.
On the night of March 24, 1944, Nicholas and the rest of his squadron were tasked with bombing the German capital, Berlin. The mission was progressing smoothly until the return journey when strong winds caused many British bombers to veer off course, heading toward the Ruhr Valley, a crucial industrial hub for Nazi Germany, which was heavily defended by anti-aircraft fire.
Just before midnight, Nicholas’s bomber, the 'Werewolf,' was struck from below by a German fighter plane. The attack caused severe damage to the aircraft, forcing the captain to order the crew to bail out. As Nicholas rushed to grab his parachute from the rear of the plane, he discovered it was already engulfed in flames, along with much of the aircraft, putting him in an agonizing dilemma.
He was faced with a stark choice: stay in the burning plane as it spiraled toward the ground or jump out of the plane, roughly miles (5.6 kilometers) above enemy territory, without a parachute. With his clothing and face already burning, Nicholas chose to leap. As he plummeted headfirst at over 120 mph (193 km/h), the 'Werewolf' exploded above him, and he lost consciousness.
When Nicholas regained consciousness, he found himself lying on snowy ground in a pine forest, with only the burns from the plane crash, a twisted knee, and some bruising to show for his harrowing fall. Both of his flying boots were missing, so with little else to do, he lit a cigarette and activated his distress signal. Eventually, he was discovered by German civilians and taken to a hospital.
Nicholas was taken into custody and interrogated by the Gestapo, who initially dismissed his story and accused him of espionage. However, an investigation of the crash site of the Werewolf and Nicholas’s landing area eventually validated his account. Nicholas ended up witnessing the conclusion of the war while becoming somewhat of a minor celebrity in the Stalag Luft III Prisoner of War camp.
3. Bear Grylls
Bear Grylls is widely recognized in the UK, and many Americans may know him from his popular series on the Discovery Channel. However, fewer people are aware of how close he came to a fatal plunge in 1996.
At the age of 21, Bear was training with the 21 SAS regiment (UK special forces), which led him to jump from a plane over Zambia in Africa. Unfortunately, his parachute failed to deploy at 16,000 feet (4,877 meters), sending him into a violent spin toward the ground without time to pull his reserve chute.
He crash-landed on his back, suffering three fractures in his spine. Doctors claimed he was mere millimeters away from never walking again, or even worse. Despite a long and painful recovery, just two years later, Bear Grylls accomplished the incredible feat of climbing Mount Everest.
2. Alan Magee
After the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941, Alan Magee chose to enlist in the American Air Force. The conflict of WWII, which had previously been centered in Europe, quickly escalated into a global war.
On January 3, 1943, Alan was stationed in England, participating in bombing missions targeting Nazi U-boat pens in Lorient, France, when the B17 he was operating as a turret gunner was shot down over St. Nazaire.
As the aircraft plummeted, Alan discovered his parachute was useless, shredded by anti-aircraft fire, and he was injured. While attempting to reach the bomb bay to bail out, the B17 exploded, throwing Alan into the air. Plummeting over 20,000 feet (6,096 meters), he crashed through the glass ceiling of a train station, becoming tangled in the girders and steel cables that supported the roof.
Although Alan had nearly lost his arm and sustained severe injuries to his body, he miraculously survived. After being rescued from the roof by German soldiers, he was treated in hospitals and POW camps. Once the war ended, he was returned to the U.S. He rarely spoke of his miraculous survival and lived quietly until he passed away at home 61 years later.
1. Ivan Chisov
Colonel Ivan Chisov also fought against the Nazis during WWII. Serving as a navigator for the Russian Red Air Force, he was in an Ilyushin Il-4 bomber when it was ambushed by German fighters. He parachuted out from an altitude of approximately 23,000 feet (7,010 meters). Unlike Nicholas Alkemade in the previous story, however, Ivan had a parachute.
The challenge Ivan faced was that deploying his parachute too early would make him an easy target for German fighters. He opted to freefall as long as possible before opening it at the last moment. Unfortunately, during his descent, Ivan lost consciousness, leaving him to fall uncontrollably without a means to save himself.
It’s believed that Ivan reached speeds of 120 to 150 miles per hour (193 to 241 km/h) during his fall before crashing into the edge of a snowy ravine. He slid and tumbled to the bottom, where he finally came to a stop. There, he discovered the extent of his injuries, which included a fractured spine and a shattered pelvis.
By some stroke of luck, he landed safely in Russian territory and was immediately taken to a hospital, where he made a full recovery. Remarkably, just three months later, he was back in the sky, resuming his mission to carry out bombing raids against the Nazis.
