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COLD OPEN DELUXE ✦ Nº 02 / 20
She Fell 2 Miles From the Sky — and Walked Out of the Jungle
A teenager fell from an exploding plane, survived, and then hiked alone through the Amazon for 11 days.
Wikimedia Commons · Alexander Gerst · CC BY 2.0
CHRISTMAS EVE, 1971
A lightning strike, then the sky opened
Juliane Koepcke, 17, was flying over the Peruvian rainforest when lightning struck her plane and it broke apart in mid-air. She was still buckled into her row of seats as it fell.
Wikimedia Commons · James Martins · CC BY 3.0
THE FALL
2 MILES
THE HEIGHT SHE FELL — AND SURVIVED
Roughly 10,000 feet, still in her seat
She plunged about two miles, spinning, strapped to a bench of airplane seats that may have acted like a parachute in the dense canopy. She blacked out — and woke up on the jungle floor, alive.
WHAT SHE WOKE UP TO
Alone in the Amazon
She had a broken collarbone, a gash, one eye swollen shut — and no one else in sight.
THE INJURIES
Broken collarbone, deep cuts, concussion
THE GEAR
One sandal, a torn dress, a bag of candy
THE COMPANY
None — she was completely alone
THE KNOWLEDGE
Her biologist parents had taught her the jungle
THE 11-DAY WALK
She used what her father taught her
Her parents were rainforest scientists. That knowledge saved her life.
1
Follow running water downstream — it leads to people
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Wade in the water to avoid dangerous ground
3
Ignore the wounds and insects; keep moving
4
Day after day, deeper into the green
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Day 11 — she found a boat and a shelter
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THE RESCUE
She was the only survivor of 91 people.
Everyone else aboard died. Juliane, who fell the farthest and landed alone in one of the most hostile environments on Earth, was the sole survivor — and she walked herself most of the way out.
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THE POINT
Knowledge is survival gear you can't lose in a crash.
She had no supplies, no help, and terrible injuries. What she did have was what her parents had taught her about the forest — and that was enough.
THE RECEIPTS · THIS REALLY HAPPENED
Look it up yourself
WHO
Juliane Koepcke, age 17
WHEN
December 24, 1971
THE FLIGHT
LANSA Flight 508, over Peru
THE FALL
About 2 miles (~3 km), strapped to her seat
THE WALK
11 days alone through the Amazon
THE TOLL
Sole survivor of 91 people aboard
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DISCUSS
What do you think?
How much of survival is luck versus preparation?
What's one piece of 'knowledge as gear' you'd want if you were lost?
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