About this episode
This episode explores survival in crises through the story of Juliane Koepcke and insights from experts on human behavior during disasters.
When disaster strikes and the chips are down, who makes it out alive? On this episode, we explore what it takes to survive a crisis. We hear the incredible story of a 17-year-old girl, who after surviving a plane crash, faced a harrowing journey though the Amazon to safety, why some people experience hallucinations when facing death, and how we’re wired to behave in emergencies. On Christmas morning in 1971, 17-year-old Juliane Koepcke woke up deep in the jungle, injured, in shock, and utterly alone. She was the sole survivor of a plane crash that had dumped her in the Peruvian Amazon — and now she would have to find her way to safety all by herself. Writer Ellen Cochrane documented Koepcke’s incredible, 11-day journey back to civilization in her new book, “ Follow the Water: The Unbelievable True Story of a Teenager's Survival in the Amazon .” We talk with journalist and lifelong adventurer John Geiger about the “Third Man Factor,” a phenomenon in which people in extreme, often life-threatening situations find themselves being helped and guided by a mysterious presence. Geiger’s book is “ The Third Man Factor: Surviving the Impossible .” Journalist Amanda Ripley has spent…
People in this episode
Guests: Ellen Cochrane, John Geiger, Amanda Ripley
Topics covered
- survival
- disaster response
- psychology of emergencies
- plane crash
- hallucinations
- human behavior
Keywords
- survival
- disaster
- plane crash
- psychology
- hallucinations
- Amazon
- Juliane Koepcke
- Ellen Cochrane
- John Geiger
- Amanda Ripley
Mentioned in this episode
Books & works: Follow the Water: The Unbelievable True Story of a Teenager's Survival in the Amazon, The Third Man Factor: Surviving the Impossible, The Unthinkable
Places: Peruvian Amazon
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