Tell us…………..

He he, I re-wrote that a few times, that’s the shortest I can make it!

Bally nora, I passed English Lit. with a shorter answer than that!

I have a few incidents that come to mind

1. One fine day, at about the age 2 I was playing in the garden and given strict instructions not to leave the garden. At 3 years old, I wasn’t one for listening, so off I trotted. Before long, Mother noticed I was gone. She, my Grandmother and Great Grandmother set off to search for me. Mother soon spotted me. I was wearing a bright red hooded top and blue trousers. She rounded a corner and spotted a tiny red thing bobbing along the main road in the distance. I very attentive driver spotted me and slowed to a stop, causing traffic behind her to stop also until Mother was able to scoop me up.

2. Moving on to about 6 years old, I was playing around some housing renovations watching the workmen on their scaffolding when I heard someone shout my name, I turned round and there was Dad’s Sergeant telling me to get the hell out of there. No sooner had I turned to face the Sergeant when a brick fell from the partially rebuilt chimney, flew inches past my head and thudded on the ground. Sergeant took me home, I was, um, told off…. with a spoon.

3. I returned to the renovations days later and found myself fascinated with a barrel of rain water. It was short enough for me to peer into but not very wide. So, being an inquisitive six year old, I leaned over and had a peek. Before I knew it, I lost my balance and went in, head first. The barrel was too small for me to turn around in and get my head above the water. The only reason I am here now, typing this, is due to a stroke of luck. My Dads Sergeant just happened to once again be strolling by (I swear he must have been watching me!), at the same instant I went into the water. He spotted my kicking legs, rushed over and pulled me out. Shaken by the experience, I was led home by Sergeant who explained to Mother what had happened. Um…. spoon.

4. This is a little longer, bear with me.

This happened on Friday October 27th 1989. Dad was stationed in Germany, we lived there with him. At the time of this incident, we lived in Mühlheim an der Ruhe. Probably means nothing to you, so on with the story.

That day started full of excitement. It was the day of the planned family holiday to the Styles home in a town called Bünde. They were good friends, a family who, like us, were part of the Army. The Father was a soldier. They had an only child named Dean. He and I were of similar age and got on well with each other. Two peas in a pod one could say. We loved to watch Dick Dastardly and Catch the Pigeon cartoons and get up to no good with our toys. He had a bike too and we had planned to spend all day on the bikes, touring his neighborhood and just having fun.
The later part of the holiday was to involve a visit to the extended family that all live in the general area.

Dad was in charge of the packing of the car. He was always able to squeeze everything in, and properly too. Mum would always leave half the stuff we needed behind and break things by manhandling them into the boot then snapping the tailgate shut, doing further damage.
I sat in my seat on the left rear and watched as Dad loaded my BMX bike into the boot. The benefits of an estate rang true with the amount it could store in the boot space. It was an invaluable amount of space for a family of five on a road trip.

The car was a 6 month old Mitsubishi Lancer estate with sky blue metallic paint and very comfortable. I had gone with my dad to pick it up 6 months previously, it was a long journey. When we arrived at the dealership, we ate dinner at a Schnellimbiss and took possession of the car after a brief check that all was as it should be. I slept on the back seat for most of the way home. When we arrived, the family came out to greet us and check out the new car. To this day, I remember the smell of the new car, the shiny paint work and my Dad’s pride for his new “toy”.

After loading my bike, Dad disappeared into the house, only to reappear with my bed quilt in his hands.
“There are plenty spare quilts at Anke’s” Mum commented as Dad proceeded to lean into the boot, my quilt in his hands. “It’s just in case, you never know” Dad explained as he proceeded to wrap the handlebars of my bike with the quilt, not to protect it, but me. Little did he know his forethought was to later save my life.
The boot space now well and truly loaded to bursting point, Dad gently closed the tailgate, locked the front door to our house and got in the car.

We set off in the early evening, so that we only experienced the tail end of the rush hour traffic.
I vividly remember my dad bringing the car up to cruising speed on a slip road the German Autobahn while already munching on one of the rolls mother had prepared for the journey.

Day turned into night as we cruised along the Autobahn. Along the way we passed a car that had turned onto its side after the driver, who presumably did not pay enough attention, had driven up the upward sloped beginning of a crash barrier. As it got dark we passed a car that was totally consumed by flames as its owner looked on helplessly with Policemen talking to him.

We had been traveling for a few hours when we encountered the tail end of a traffic jam that stopped all 3 lanes of traffic. My dad approached the end of the queue in the middle lane, using his Hazard lights to tell traffic behind we were coming to a standstill. We were just about stopped, only crawling at foot pace when my dad looked in his rear view mirror, his face was lit up by headlights from behind, he shouted “What the ****… hold on!”. Before I could question what he meant, the impact deafened my ears. That split second felt like an eternity. Glass smashed, metal crunched, plastic cracked and creaked, tires screeched. It all came together as a blast of terrifyingly loud noise. I can still hear it, all these years later.
We were launched forward at about 30MPH from a virtual standstill. Mother’s seat back collapsed onto my lap. The radio, that was playing Belinda Carlisle “Leave a light on” cut out. I watched as dad wrestled with the steering wheel and fought to bring the car to a stop in a safe place. It must have only been about 10 seconds before we stopped. In that time I held onto the back of Mothers seat as if her life depended on it. She was screaming hysterically. It was during this time I noticed a sharp pain at the back of my head. I looked to the left and saw people leaping out of their cars as we came to a stop. My sister had begun to scream in agony. She had not been wearing her seat belt correctly; consequently her right leg was trapped between the back of the driver’s seat and the rear seat. The force of the impact broke a bone. My three year old brother sat relatively calmly in his child seat.

As we came to a stop, my dad instantly leaped out of the car and opened the right hand passenger door to get my sister out. Mother fumbled for her glasses while another motorist attempted to open my door which did not open at first as it was buckled. After getting my sister and baby brother out, Dad came round and almost tore my door off to get me out. I could smell petrol, it was vital we got out quickly.

Once we were all out of the car, Dad herded us over to the crash barrier away from the car. Fellow motorists flocked to aide us, some had towels, some had blankets. There was a flurry of activity. Dad left us in the hands of the concerned onlookers as he went over to assist the person who had hit us.

Somehow that person had not seen the three lanes of standing traffic and drove their Nissan into the back of our car at a considerable speed. They span a few times before coming to rest. Other motorists had flocked to assist them. Satisfied everyone was OK, all things considered, Dad returned to secure the car and removed the keys from the ignition and stood by us. His years of Army training, learning to keep cool in a crunch situation, helped him remain calm and focused. His medical training also allowed him to correctly identify that my sisters femur was broken just above the knee.

While standing beside my family, I looked at the wreck of our car and could see that the handlebars of my BMX were roughly where my head had been. It must have hit me with the force of the impact. I’m lucky it didn’t go through me. Dads lasts minute idea of wrapping my quilt around the exposed handlebars had undoubtedly saved my life.

I can tell you now, the sound of emergency service sirens getting louder never felt sweeter.

BSG-75. Know what you mean. but look on the bright side, at least you lived to tell the tale:)
Jim

Lincoln .7

12 1/2 years ago, burst appendix, feinted at work and was found on the loo floor by a visitor to the building.

taken to A&E where a steady queue of people formed behind 😮 me to test (I always thought the appendix was near the front ?) anyhow, emergency operation followed, it had been burst a while, the acid had eaten a hole into my bowel, so that was leaking.

various raging infections, Doctor said (while looking at my tubes, one down my nose, one to pee out of, two to drain my belly, and checking the 50 odd staples in my belly) another few hours, that would have been really serious.

6 years on, the bowel hadn’t healed and gave me endless jip so half of that came out as well…

i was once caught up in an explosion , i used to work in microbiology making blood cultures , the stuff in bottles that they inject blood tests into , to grow the apropriate nasty !!

part of the procedure was to autoclave them in superheated steam to steralise the product

being winter the doors to the working area were wide open to allow the staff to keep cool

unfortunately the cold air hit the superheated bottles there were a couple of pops and i didn’t need further warning i leant the mop up i was using and started to leg it just in time for a roar like afterburners as about 1000 bottles exploded in less than a second

So the film “28 days” is true:eek:

[QUOTE=PeeDee;1830830]What a thread LoL.
Merry Christmas!

Near death? Car crashes, shot at, fell off a church roof, flew Ryan Air

I think out of that lot, Ryan Air would be the most frightning:D

Jim.

Lincoln .7

Starter crew on shacks at BKK .Two times I was standing in front when the bomb load s fell to the tarmac!!One lot was sonobouys and depth charges and the second time was a large torpedo and other stuff.Amazing how fast you can run if you try! Hunters in Aden had old cable and especially in the wings and on several occasions things would drop of (fuel tanks!!) and even a salvo of rockets as one went down the runway!Never liked standing in front of them when they were loaded!!

What a thread LoL.
Merry Christmas!

Near death? Car crashes, shot at, fell off a church roof, flew Ryan Air.

i was once caught up in an explosion , i used to work in microbiology making blood cultures , the stuff in bottles that they inject blood tests into , to grow the apropriate nasty !!

part of the procedure was to autoclave them in superheated steam to steralise the product

being winter the doors to the working area were wide open to allow the staff to keep cool

unfortunately the cold air hit the superheated bottles there were a couple of pops and i didn’t need further warning i leant the mop up i was using and started to leg it just in time for a roar like afterburners as about 1000 bottles exploded in less than a second

i turned back to go back in after the explosion had finnished and the scary part was not knowing if my mates had made it out the room was full of steam and it seamed like an age for it to clear so i could check

luckily we all did but none of us got away without being bloodied

later i surveyed the mop handle that was left where i was standing it was ripped to shreads by the glass

although we didn’y get time to contenplate too much as dave came in and said ” you’re meant to put gellatine in it not gellegnite ya daft fe**ers !!”

Did you spend long in I.T.U.?:)

My wife and I had a potentially life threatening incident just a short while ago. She was wearing a new dress and asked me if her bottom looked big in it. I said that it depended on how much of the sky one could normally see thru’ the sitting room window.

John Green

Had a few worrying moments in 21 years in flight test. Nothing that scared me particularly at the time but I guess that was training and doing your job. It usually only after that you realized how close you’d been.

Care to share one or two with us Arthur?. so far, I am amazed at some of the replies so far recieved.
Jim.

Lincoln .7

Hi Robbo. Thanks for one of the best stories posted, seriously, I think your story would be a very good basis for a film, just a sprinkling of added “Thrill” material needed and a nail biting story/film.
I think, with the exception of not taking a sleeping bag, you were very well prepared. Personaly, I would have taken my bush knife, which has a steel, and striker, also some fat wood, and a bit of dry wood to start a fire, however, hindsight is a good thing, not sure, even with your experience which was excellent, I think as soon as the weather changed I would do as they advise you in an aircraft crash in the wilderness and stayed put, and dug in, but having no bag, you probably did the best thing by keeping warmish by moving.
Thanks for a very interesting story.
Jim.

Lincoln .7

Had a few worrying moments in 21 years in flight test. Nothing that scared me particularly at the time but I guess that was training and doing your job. It usually only after that you realized how close you’d been.

[QUOTE=richw_82;1830571]About 5 years ago, I nearly bled to death, after being in hospital for surgery.

Hi Rich, I had a similar experience last July, when on the Op table, they flushed out waste from my bladder they had cut away, and managed to fill my lungs up with the waste and water, ended up in the H.D. unit with a full time one to one nurse until I had fully recovered several days and one infection later.
Everyone who has posted so far has had some narrow escapes.
Jim.

Lincoln .7

Bet you were frightened to death for a start, not being able to see.
Jim.

Only for a second or two. But as I said in the original post, when you know death is a certainty it is actually an astonishingly calm moment

Moggy

Jim, the supposed rust bucket has 2 kills to it’s name, namely a Golf and a Clio! Golf hit parked MG, MG was shunted into parked Clio, result only the MG is still on the road!:p

O.K. Graham, the M.G. is now a smaller compressesd 2 seater now, but I believe Ben.:D Seriously though, a very narrow escape with the bike though, at least you lived to tell the tale.
Jim.
Lincoln .7

[QUOTE=Moggy C;1830602]No, I flew out of the snow somewhere near Northampton and ended up back at Wellesbourne in decent weather. But mentally drained.

I think you must have had your guardian angel on your wing that day Moggs.
I am, I.M.O. a good competant driver, but the one driving condition I hate is FOG. you think you know where you are but 9 out of 10 times your well out.
Bet you were frightened to death for a start, not being able to see.
Jim.

Lincoln .7

Jim, the supposed rust bucket has 2 kills to it’s name, namely a Golf and a Clio! Golf hit parked MG, MG was shunted into parked Clio, result only the MG is still on the road!:p