What is the closest you have come to death?

[okrattler]

I don't know I've had several times in my life I figured I was gonna die but probably the time I almost drowned in Foss Lake here in Oklahoma was the closest. My family was on a pontoon boat and I thought I'd swim out to the boat. It wasn't that far from shallow water. I was touching the bottom one second,the next second I was in a hole and I sunk like a rock. The under current had me and every time I'd come up I'd try to scream but I used that energy to take another breath. At one point I tried to sink to hit bottom just so I could push up with as much power as I could just so I could catch a deeper breath. Someone finally saw me or heard me splashing and jumped in and got me. Being up that high on that pontoon boat and with me being so close nobody knew what was happening. If I'd have died I'd have been really close to the boat. But I didn't,I didn't even need resuscitated and never have had to be so I don't know how close to death I've been for sure. I guess I'll ask God how many times he was unlocking Heaven's gate for me before he got to open it, when I do meet him.

Not too terribly long ago they found a car and probably remains of people that had been missing for a really long time not far from the boat ramp I almost drowned by. Wouldn't surprise me if the hole I fell off into in that murky *** water ain't where that car was. All I know is it was deep and I'm glad I ain't still down there.

When I was a baby I was really sick in the hospital and the kid that was in the same room with me passed away. I know that really had nothing to do with me but technically I was close to death. The grim reaper was fartin around in the vicinity of me.

[Swampa]

I was diving/spear fishing off of A rig named Diana. Started chasing an Amberjack and wasn’t watching my dive computer. After several minutes I fell asleep and started dreaming. I woke up to my buddy dragging me up by my tank at 100 feet. My computer read 174 feet. I’m positive if it wasn’t for him I would have slowly sank to death.

[30-30]

One September, back in my 20's(1985-86), as I was wading In chest deep water(almost over my waders)in a local reservoir along the Brazos River, while Teal hunting with a couple of friends, when I stepped up on a huge log to gain a little height.. I stood there for about 10-15 seconds and the log suddenly took off. All I remember was going under, dropping my shotgun, and as a came up to the surface a huge, powerful tail, grazing me in the side of the head as my buddy was firing 12 gauge rounds 2 feet above and over my head into the head of a monster 12'+ gator.. It was a little sketchy..

True story..

The feet of my waders would have been a little squishy after that...

[Tony Pic]

These are some incredible stories. My thanks and prayers for all the military and first responders.

[twosixteens]

Many years ago we were replacing the impeller on a 16 inch pump (2000 lbs) on a sand dredge. There was just enough room on the port side for me to fit between the pump shell and the engine room wall the starboard side had lots of room so Dennis who was considerably larger than me took that side. As we were hoisting the worn out impeller out the crane operator dropped it (old P&H friction crane) from about 10 feet (he was swinging it to the port side). I looked up and had no where to go. The impeller hit the top edge of the pump shell (eye level)and flipped away from me. Dennis wasn't so lucky he was hit from his waist down breaking him up pretty badly. There were three people on the dredge and all three of us just knew I was gonna die when that impeller fell. To this day I don't know why it didn't hit me I was looking right at it headed right for me.

[mjhunter82]

Cruising 55mph going over an overpass on the Anderson loop in San Antonio on way to buddies ranch in Rocksprings. 6 of us in a 7.3 F250 pulling a trailer with ranger on it. I was riding in the front middle with no seat belt on. As we were on approach up the incline the front left tire blew and immediately shot us across the highway at the steepest part. We hit the I beam head on and the truck flipped ejecting myself and my buddy in the passenger seat. Not sure how any of us survived but the two of us whom were ejected went to the ER in ambulance. I had a concussion and he was pretty sore. Our friend in the rear middle seat had his lap belt and was stuck in the truck upside down for a while. He broke his pelvis and concussed and was life flighted. Needless to say there was beer, ammo, guns, clothes, bows, and everything else in the truck all over the highway. Our ranger and 12' trailer sheared the receiver ball off and was a 1/4 mile down the road. If it weren't for a ranch hand full bumper I wouldn't be telling this story right now!

[PondPopper]

The feet of my waders would have been a little squishy after that...

Honestly it happened so fast that I didn't even realize what the heck was going on until it was over.. The scariest part, after the shooting stopped and the smoke cleared, was feeling around with my feet to find my shotgun, which only took a minute or two, and then going back under to get it... It was no doubt a serious situation.

[PondPopper]

I was diving/spear fishing off of A rig named Diana. Started chasing an Amberjack and wasn’t watching my dive computer. After several minutes I fell asleep and started dreaming. I woke up to my buddy dragging me up by my tank at 100 feet. My computer read 174 feet. I’m positive if it wasn’t for him I would have slowly sank to death.

Talk about the "Razors Edge"!!! WOW. That was a close one..

[glen]

I came real close to being mauled by a vicious animal. My wife put on some jeans and I told her that I thought that her *** was too big for them. Lucky for me my kid walked in and saved me from certain death

[7sdad]

Getting married!

[FireMedic26]

I've probably got a few different stories, but one comes to mind; probably because of how stupid it is. I'm a FF/Paramedic and another FF/Medic and I were moving yards on our days off. I was weedeating and stepped off of a curb and had a car blow their horn and buzz by me; barely missing me. I nearly crapped myself. I thought to myself "it's my job to fight fires and I almost died just now, mowing someone else's grass!".

Sent from a satellite in outer space using Tapatalk

[CoolHandLuke]

Cruising 55mph going over an overpass on the Anderson loop in San Antonio on way to buddies ranch in Rocksprings. 6 of us in a 7.3 F250 pulling a trailer with ranger on it. I was riding in the front middle with no seat belt on. As we were on approach up the incline the front left tire blew and immediately shot us across the highway at the steepest part. We hit the I beam head on and the truck flipped ejecting myself and my buddy in the passenger seat. Not sure how any of us survived but the two of us whom were ejected went to the ER in ambulance. I had a concussion and he was pretty sore. Our friend in the rear middle seat had his lap belt and was stuck in the truck upside down for a while. He broke his pelvis and concussed and was life flighted. Needless to say there was beer, ammo, guns, clothes, bows, and everything else in the truck all over the highway. Our ranger and 12' trailer sheared the receiver ball off and was a 1/4 mile down the road. If it weren't for a ranch hand full bumper I wouldn't be telling this story right now!

Was the truck red?

[Drycreek3189]

Might as well add mine to the list. All of my adult life I've operated heavy equipment as a dozer hand, a foreman, or an owner of a construction company. Back in the eighties, when the oilfield was tough, I was a foreman for a company out of Palestine. I had bid an Exxon location near Gilmer and as usual, if you were the low bid, there wasn't much money in it. In order to save a little money, I had a dozer moved to the job, but no operator. There was no clearing to speak of, and we were gonna move the dirt with scrapers. So I cleared out the brush and briars in an old fence on the location, got the scraper hands started, and walked the tractor down to the road where I had a hand waiting to help me take down the fence next to the county road. There were just three or four trees and a few bushes where the road entrance was going to be. The last one was a wild cherry, known to be brittle even while alive. So, I eased into it, gave it a little nudge and it busted off and fell right back over the ROPS and across a 72,000 volt power line. Man, that's when the fireworks started. I had blue lightning popping between the hood sweeps and the hood, between the upright posts on the ROPS and each time it sounded like a .22 firing. I was scared, more scared than at any time in my life. I almost jumped off the tractor three times and each time I remembered folks telling me to never jump, because you can't jump far enough. I finally thought, "If I'm gonna die, I'm gonna die getting the hell out of here". I just pulled it into second, latched in the clutch and walked out into the pasture. About that time the power line burned into and it was over. My labor hand and two guys from the community water supply watched it all happen. They were as scared as I was I think because they thought I was gonna be scorched right in front of them. My guys on the scrapers never knew it was happening.

When Upshur Rural Electric showed up, the foreman asked me who was on the dozer. I replied that I was. He said "You're supposed to be dead". I said "I thought I was !"

I've had a few other close calls, such as being pinned in the tractor by a treetop, sliding off a slope, but those were just butt-puckering moments. Riding the lightning was as close as I've ever come to dying.

[jshouse]

Pulling trailer with three pallets of concrete outdoor tiles improperly placed to rear if trailer..
Hit 50 mph on 45 and trailer started walking so far it was in both lanes to either side if me.. rear end if my truck was skidding side to side..hopping..
Cars behind me running off the road to get from behind me..
Let off the gas ..it settled down.. pulled off the road and hugged my wife and checked on my 2 yearold daughter in her car seat in the back seat.. she was giggling.
Scared the life outta me.. shook for a couple hours after that..
Drove ten miles an hour the rest of the way home.

i have a similar one but it was a landscaping trailer full of mulch. driving north on 35 in lewisville, before i knew it the trailer was swinging back and forth seemingly at a 90 degree angle to my truck lol, and traffic was stopped behind me. i just let off the gas and coasted to a stop. my workers in the back seat were scared ****less, so was i.

looking back i can still see the looks on their faces and laugh.

edit.. dang this thread is old!

[jshouse]

i got a jeep after i graduated high school and 1 day i had the top off and Prodigy playing full blast, i am about to come into Emory from Sulphur Springs, probably going 60mph, and i just remember looking up and seeing a white pickup with a dirtbike in the back stopped in front of me. i swerved to the right and tag his right rear corner and next thing i know i open my eyes and the jeep is laying on the passenger door and facing back the way i was coming from. there was smoke everywhere so i unbuckled my seatbelt and ran away as fast as i could. that was literally the first time i had ever worn my seatbelt in that jeep.

i got 9 stitches in my left elbow and thats it. my mom and dad were on vacation in mexico for 2 more days and we didnt tell them till they got back. my mom threw up all night after seeing the pics.