0:00:02 > 0:00:04A close call, a moment of danger when life can hang in the balance.
0:00:04 > 0:00:08What would happen if I wasn't found, or didn't find a way out of it?
0:00:08 > 0:00:11A split second where the outcome could go either way.
0:00:11 > 0:00:13It's a choice - life or death.
0:00:13 > 0:00:16The difference between disaster and survival.
0:00:16 > 0:00:20We saw a lady who was critically ill, if not dying in front of us.
0:00:20 > 0:00:23I kept thinking the hotel was going to fall on us.
0:00:23 > 0:00:26These are the people that have been there and lived to tell the tale.
0:00:26 > 0:00:29It's a day they'll never forget -
0:00:29 > 0:00:31the day they had a close call.
0:00:47 > 0:00:49Today, on Close Calls -
0:00:49 > 0:00:53paragliding instructor Sam is plunging to earth,
0:00:53 > 0:00:55spinning at 90mph.
0:00:55 > 0:00:57He's out of control.
0:00:57 > 0:00:59You're trying to live, you want to live.
0:00:59 > 0:01:01It's a choice - life or death.
0:01:01 > 0:01:06He's going to hit bare rock, or crash into trees -
0:01:06 > 0:01:07either one could kill him.
0:01:10 > 0:01:14And...two young boys are trapped on the third floor of their home.
0:01:14 > 0:01:16It's rapidly filling with smoke.
0:01:16 > 0:01:18It was hard to breathe
0:01:18 > 0:01:21and I couldn't open my eyes cos it would hurt.
0:01:21 > 0:01:25He was trying to catch his breath, and he was crying and shaking.
0:01:25 > 0:01:28Fire officers are racing to save them.
0:01:28 > 0:01:31On our way to the job, they confirmed there were two children.
0:01:31 > 0:01:33That's as serious as it gets.
0:01:34 > 0:01:38Also today, a dad-to-be on a last lads' ski holiday
0:01:38 > 0:01:41has an horrific collision on the slopes.
0:01:41 > 0:01:43The first thing I knew about the other person
0:01:43 > 0:01:44was the moment of impact.
0:01:46 > 0:01:50Looked behind me, and we could see his face was just covered in blood -
0:01:50 > 0:01:51just red.
0:02:00 > 0:02:02Fethiye, Turkey.
0:02:02 > 0:02:06It's a blazing hot afternoon when, 6,200 feet up,
0:02:06 > 0:02:10paragliding instructor Sam Cullingworth launches himself
0:02:10 > 0:02:14off Mount Babadag, a favourite but notorious location
0:02:14 > 0:02:17for extreme sports enthusiasts.
0:02:18 > 0:02:21Everything seems calm as Sam films the view.
0:02:21 > 0:02:26But seconds after these shots, Sam faces the worst moments of his life.
0:02:28 > 0:02:30Sam misjudges the thermals.
0:02:30 > 0:02:35His paraglider canopy collapses and he plunges towards the ground.
0:02:35 > 0:02:37And I lost nearly 2,000 feet.
0:02:37 > 0:02:39And, literally, you're just going like this...
0:02:39 > 0:02:40HE BLOWS
0:02:40 > 0:02:44His onboard camera records the terrifying events that follow.
0:02:52 > 0:02:56Sam regularly visits Turkey, where he has a home,
0:02:56 > 0:02:58but he comes from less sunnier climes -
0:02:58 > 0:03:00Kirkburton, West Yorkshire,
0:03:00 > 0:03:03where he works as a personal trainer.
0:03:03 > 0:03:05He lives with his fiancee Ali.
0:03:06 > 0:03:08Being with Sammy is never boring.
0:03:08 > 0:03:09You name it, he's done it -
0:03:09 > 0:03:12scuba diving, on the motorbike.
0:03:12 > 0:03:15So I always just accepted, right from the beginning, he was always
0:03:15 > 0:03:17going to be doing something out there, a bit out there.
0:03:17 > 0:03:21Sam isn't what you see on the surface, there's a lot more to him.
0:03:22 > 0:03:27But for sports enthusiast Sam, his main love - other than Ali - is paragliding.
0:03:27 > 0:03:30I've always, as a child, dreamed of flying.
0:03:30 > 0:03:33You get the serenity - when you're up at cloud-base, underneath the
0:03:33 > 0:03:35cloud and you're just gliding along and there's these
0:03:35 > 0:03:39spectacular views - there's a kind of peace, almost, to it.
0:03:39 > 0:03:42Sam's been paragliding for the last 16 years
0:03:42 > 0:03:45and is a qualified instructor.
0:03:45 > 0:03:46We've taught disabled people to fly.
0:03:46 > 0:03:49You know, if they can't walk, they can still fly.
0:03:49 > 0:03:53And Sam regularly makes the pilgrimage to Mount Babadag
0:03:53 > 0:03:58in Turkey. At 6,000 feet, it's a mecca for paragliders.
0:03:58 > 0:04:02I'd gone on a holiday to Turkey to see some old friends there,
0:04:02 > 0:04:06and actually go flying off the mountain that I love so much.
0:04:06 > 0:04:09It's a hot day, mid-afternoon, when Sam launches
0:04:09 > 0:04:12for his second flight off the mountain.
0:04:13 > 0:04:17I took off and got in a nice, strong thermal just on the ridge.
0:04:19 > 0:04:22Hot air rising off the ground creates thermal currents
0:04:22 > 0:04:24that give paragliders lift.
0:04:26 > 0:04:29Sam is flying thousands of feet above the bay,
0:04:29 > 0:04:31but he's misjudged the thermals
0:04:31 > 0:04:33and the error proves catastrophic.
0:04:37 > 0:04:39It's entirely my fault, really,
0:04:39 > 0:04:42that I ended up in the situation that I ended.
0:04:42 > 0:04:44I'd reached the edge of a thermal
0:04:44 > 0:04:46and basically there was a downdraught.
0:04:46 > 0:04:49The glider collapsed on the outside and went through the lines.
0:04:49 > 0:04:51I couldn't recover it.
0:04:52 > 0:04:53With his canopy tangled up,
0:04:53 > 0:04:58Sam's sent into a terrifying 90mph spin.
0:04:58 > 0:05:01I was totally locked out, and I had three-and-a-half Gs pressing
0:05:01 > 0:05:04on my body and, literally, you're just going like this.
0:05:04 > 0:05:06HE BLOWS
0:05:08 > 0:05:11I did think I was going to die and you can pass out -
0:05:11 > 0:05:14people have been known to pass out and then they can't do anything,
0:05:14 > 0:05:17and I lost nearly 2,000 feet in that period of time.
0:05:18 > 0:05:21Spinning violently, desperate, Sam needs all his strength to try
0:05:21 > 0:05:24and reach his emergency reserve parachute.
0:05:24 > 0:05:25You're trying to live.
0:05:25 > 0:05:29You want to live. It's a choice - life or death.
0:05:29 > 0:05:30That's it.
0:05:31 > 0:05:34All the blood is right at the back of your body, like, in my boots
0:05:34 > 0:05:37and behind me, and it was like trying to reach something,
0:05:37 > 0:05:41and it just reached, it just literally managed to throw it out.
0:05:42 > 0:05:45The moment everything slowed down and stopped
0:05:45 > 0:05:47it was just like, "Hallelujah."
0:05:47 > 0:05:50But Sam's relief is short-lived.
0:05:50 > 0:05:53The reserve parachute opened up and started to fly,
0:05:53 > 0:05:57but then my paraglider decided to fly as well, came back up,
0:05:57 > 0:05:59smacked the reserve parachute and took a load of air
0:05:59 > 0:06:02out of the parachute and I was falling again.
0:06:03 > 0:06:07Later - Sam stops spinning,
0:06:07 > 0:06:10but he's now too close to the ground to avoid crash-landing.
0:06:10 > 0:06:12He's going to hit bare rock,
0:06:12 > 0:06:15or plunge into the towering 60-foot trees.
0:06:15 > 0:06:17I was, like, "Please!"
0:06:25 > 0:06:27Keeping children safe and secure at home
0:06:27 > 0:06:30is every parent's priority, obviously.
0:06:30 > 0:06:32But it's the bravery and skill of the emergency services
0:06:32 > 0:06:34we turn to if things go badly wrong.
0:06:41 > 0:06:43Briar Hill, Northampton -
0:06:43 > 0:06:447.16am.
0:06:45 > 0:06:48Two boys are trapped in the top floor of this house
0:06:48 > 0:06:50while it burns beneath them.
0:06:50 > 0:06:54I was scared. It was hard to breathe
0:06:54 > 0:06:57and I couldn't open my eyes cos it would hurt.
0:06:57 > 0:07:00Cameras mounted on a fire engine show firefighters
0:07:00 > 0:07:03attempt a daring rescue.
0:07:03 > 0:07:07It's the smoke - the smoke is what generally kills people
0:07:07 > 0:07:09and there was an awful lot of that.
0:07:09 > 0:07:12Firefighter Chris Evans will be going up the ladder
0:07:12 > 0:07:15to try and save the boys, but he knows time is running out.
0:07:20 > 0:07:22Sarah Scott is a busy woman.
0:07:22 > 0:07:25As well as working in a kitchen that delivers school meals, she's a
0:07:25 > 0:07:29single parent to four children who all live with her under one roof.
0:07:29 > 0:07:32It's a struggle. I work a lot of hours, but I try and balance it out
0:07:32 > 0:07:35with the children so we get to spend time together.
0:07:37 > 0:07:38They mean everything to me.
0:07:39 > 0:07:43As well as her 23-year-old son and 20-year-old daughter,
0:07:43 > 0:07:47there's 15-year-old James and his 11-year-old brother Liam.
0:07:47 > 0:07:50These two have a bit of a love-hate relationship.
0:07:51 > 0:07:53Sometimes we don't get along.
0:07:53 > 0:07:55Sometimes he can be quit...
0:07:55 > 0:07:56Quite irritating.
0:07:56 > 0:07:59- All right.- James is very sensible,
0:07:59 > 0:08:01he's very trustworthy and thoughtful.
0:08:02 > 0:08:06Liam's a bit of a scatterbrain. He's very away with the fairies, Liam.
0:08:06 > 0:08:08SHE CHUCKLES
0:08:10 > 0:08:11He's just annoying.
0:08:13 > 0:08:17But Liam is soon going to need to rely on his sensible big brother.
0:08:20 > 0:08:22It's a Monday morning in November.
0:08:22 > 0:08:24Sarah's older children have already gone out,
0:08:24 > 0:08:27while James and Liam are still asleep.
0:08:27 > 0:08:30Sarah herself has had to leave extra early for work.
0:08:30 > 0:08:32I had to open up,
0:08:32 > 0:08:34so I left at about 6.40
0:08:34 > 0:08:39and I planned to call James to wake up for school at 7.30.
0:08:39 > 0:08:42But Sarah never gets to make that wake-up call.
0:08:43 > 0:08:45Instead, alone in the house,
0:08:45 > 0:08:48the boys get woken by something far more disturbing.
0:08:49 > 0:08:54Just after 7am, Liam's in his bedroom on the middle floor.
0:08:54 > 0:08:57So, I woke up and I saw the room was full of smoke.
0:09:01 > 0:09:04I shouted, "James! James, there's a fire!"
0:09:04 > 0:09:06And he obviously couldn't hear me.
0:09:08 > 0:09:12Liam realises he's going to have to try and reach James's room on the
0:09:12 > 0:09:15third floor. But opening his bedroom door,
0:09:15 > 0:09:18he finds the hallway clogged with smoke.
0:09:18 > 0:09:20It was hard to breathe
0:09:20 > 0:09:23and I couldn't open my eyes cos it would hurt.
0:09:25 > 0:09:28Desperate for help, he runs into the choking smoke
0:09:28 > 0:09:30and upstairs to wake his brother.
0:09:31 > 0:09:35He was trying to catch his breath and he was crying and shaking,
0:09:35 > 0:09:37so I got up and opened the door
0:09:37 > 0:09:41and then just loads of smoke just come in my bedroom door.
0:09:41 > 0:09:46James realises immediately this is a serious fire.
0:09:46 > 0:09:49The heat hit me and I could tell that I couldn't go downstairs
0:09:49 > 0:09:51and, like, put it out.
0:09:51 > 0:09:55He's right - the boys are on the third floor, 30 feet up.
0:09:55 > 0:09:58But the heat and smoke are now so intense,
0:09:58 > 0:10:00they can't get out the window.
0:10:00 > 0:10:02They're trapped.
0:10:02 > 0:10:05I was panicking, I didn't know what to do.
0:10:05 > 0:10:07The most frightening moment of my life.
0:10:08 > 0:10:12Liam was crying and I opened my window straight away and he just,
0:10:12 > 0:10:15like, sat up by the windowsill and I just told him, "Liam,
0:10:15 > 0:10:17"It's going to be all right. I'll call 999."
0:10:19 > 0:10:22James takes charge of the situation.
0:10:22 > 0:10:25He calls 999 on his mobile and is put through to a fire and rescue
0:10:25 > 0:10:28emergency call taker.
0:10:28 > 0:10:30This is a recording of the call.
0:10:35 > 0:10:36BOY CRIES IN BACKGROUND
0:10:39 > 0:10:42With his younger brother distraught in the background,
0:10:42 > 0:10:45James attempts to keep his cool in the heat.
0:10:45 > 0:10:47I was really frightened, trying really hard to stay calm
0:10:47 > 0:10:50because I didn't want to worry Liam.
0:10:50 > 0:10:53The call handler grasps the seriousness of the situation immediately.
0:10:56 > 0:10:58Mereway Fire Station head out.
0:10:59 > 0:11:01Firefighter Chris Evans is on board.
0:11:02 > 0:11:06On our way to the job, they confirmed there were two children -
0:11:06 > 0:11:07makes everyone sort of sit up a bit more.
0:11:07 > 0:11:09With the fire engines on their way,
0:11:09 > 0:11:12the boys feel the blaze below intensify.
0:11:12 > 0:11:16The smoke had got thicker and I could feel the heat through the floor.
0:11:16 > 0:11:18I could tell that the fire was getting really big.
0:11:18 > 0:11:22The trained call-taker knows what they need to do to stay alive.
0:11:27 > 0:11:30Yeah, we put the blanket at the bottom of the door.
0:11:32 > 0:11:35It worked, like it didn't get any more smoke.
0:11:35 > 0:11:38But with the blaze increasing beneath them,
0:11:38 > 0:11:43every second they wait for rescue is agonising for James and Liam.
0:11:49 > 0:11:52For Liam's sake, James is still trying to stay calm.
0:11:59 > 0:12:00No.
0:12:02 > 0:12:06The two fire engines reach the burning house within seven minutes.
0:12:06 > 0:12:11A camera on the front of one of the engines shows the crew arriving
0:12:11 > 0:12:15at the back of the house. The boys can just be seen leaning out
0:12:15 > 0:12:17of James's room at the top of the picture.
0:12:17 > 0:12:20Heavy smoke is coming out of their window.
0:12:20 > 0:12:24Chris and his fellow firefighters are worried by what they see.
0:12:24 > 0:12:27The smoke is what generally kills people
0:12:27 > 0:12:29and there was an awful lot of that.
0:12:29 > 0:12:32Two firefighters wearing breathing apparatus go to the front of
0:12:32 > 0:12:35the house to fight the fire on the ground floor, while,
0:12:35 > 0:12:38on the engine's rear camera, Chris can be seen here
0:12:38 > 0:12:41taking down the crew's ladder to get to the boys.
0:12:41 > 0:12:44But access here, at the back of the house, is difficult.
0:12:44 > 0:12:48We have a lot of problems with vehicles, trees in our way.
0:12:48 > 0:12:50It was a very congested area.
0:12:50 > 0:12:52Still on the line to the call-taker,
0:12:52 > 0:12:56the boys frantically watch as the firefighters try to reach them.
0:13:02 > 0:13:05But Chris makes short work of that.
0:13:19 > 0:13:21The crew then manoeuvre the ladder
0:13:21 > 0:13:23up to where James and Liam are anxiously waiting.
0:13:23 > 0:13:25The thick smoke is choking them.
0:13:28 > 0:13:32Chris goes up the ladder to rescue the boys.
0:13:32 > 0:13:34I got to the top of the ladder and spoke
0:13:34 > 0:13:36to the younger of the two boys.
0:13:36 > 0:13:38He was quite frightened, understandably.
0:13:38 > 0:13:40Smoke was coming out around them.
0:13:40 > 0:13:42His brother was remarkably calm.
0:13:42 > 0:13:45Chris decides to take Liam down first.
0:13:45 > 0:13:46He let me go first,
0:13:46 > 0:13:49probably because I'm the younger one and I was the more panicky one.
0:13:50 > 0:13:55The fire service camera shows Liam in the white top being helped out of
0:13:55 > 0:13:56the burning house by Chris.
0:14:03 > 0:14:08We were on the third floor, so it was extremely scary.
0:14:08 > 0:14:11He was obviously quite shaky when he got onto the ladder.
0:14:12 > 0:14:15People do, obviously, have a tendency to panic
0:14:15 > 0:14:18and the last thing you want is for someone to jump.
0:14:18 > 0:14:20They, like, supported us.
0:14:20 > 0:14:22They was behind us, holding on to us,
0:14:22 > 0:14:24making sure we don't fall.
0:14:25 > 0:14:27Liam's safely down.
0:14:27 > 0:14:29With the room getting smokier,
0:14:29 > 0:14:32James has had to wait a further tense minute for rescue.
0:14:32 > 0:14:34But he's calm to the end.
0:14:40 > 0:14:43But as Chris races back up the ladder,
0:14:43 > 0:14:46the smoke increases violently, engulfing James.
0:14:46 > 0:14:48Cos I couldn't breathe,
0:14:48 > 0:14:51I felt really dizzy and I thought I was going to collapse.
0:14:53 > 0:14:58James has to turn to face the smoke to get out of the window.
0:14:58 > 0:15:02He's got one foot on the ladder, but disorientated, he stumbles.
0:15:05 > 0:15:07To stop him from falling,
0:15:07 > 0:15:11firefighter Chris reacts quickly and pulls him towards him.
0:15:11 > 0:15:14Cos we were quite high up and I wanted to make sure
0:15:14 > 0:15:17that he wasn't going to be getting dizzy or falling off the ladder.
0:15:17 > 0:15:21It's been 14 minutes since the boys discovered the fire.
0:15:21 > 0:15:25Finally, they're both safely out of the burning house.
0:15:25 > 0:15:28Yeah, I thought I was extremely lucky to get out there safe.
0:15:28 > 0:15:32I don't know what would have happened if Liam didn't wake me up.
0:15:34 > 0:15:38With the boys safe, the fire service call mum Sarah at her work
0:15:38 > 0:15:40to let her know what's happened.
0:15:40 > 0:15:44When I got the phone call, I couldn't really believe
0:15:44 > 0:15:49what was happening. When I arrived, I ran to the ambulance and I jumped
0:15:49 > 0:15:52in there and Liam started crying, but James was OK.
0:15:52 > 0:15:53He was calm as usual.
0:15:54 > 0:15:57It was just... Just a relief to get back to them.
0:15:57 > 0:16:01She gave us a hug, said, "You're all right."
0:16:01 > 0:16:02I told them I loved them.
0:16:04 > 0:16:07Physically, Liam has suffered worse from the fire.
0:16:07 > 0:16:10He's taken to hospital and given oxygen
0:16:10 > 0:16:12to counteract the effects of the smoke.
0:16:12 > 0:16:17But, after four hours, he leaves with a clean bill of health.
0:16:17 > 0:16:22Fire investigation later reveals all this was caused by a toaster.
0:16:23 > 0:16:27We lost everything. My family were safe...
0:16:27 > 0:16:31and that's all we really need. Everything else can be replaced.
0:16:33 > 0:16:35The family have now moved into a new home.
0:16:37 > 0:16:39The two boys both received medals for bravery
0:16:39 > 0:16:44and James was commended for his calmness in a crisis.
0:16:44 > 0:16:47I honestly don't think either of them realise
0:16:47 > 0:16:49how brave they were that day.
0:16:49 > 0:16:52To be able to climb out of that window, three storeys down,
0:16:52 > 0:16:55on a ladder when your house is on fire -
0:16:55 > 0:16:56that's brave.
0:17:07 > 0:17:12Coming up - a high-speed collision on the slopes, and a friend's battle
0:17:12 > 0:17:15to get an injured snowboarder down the mountain.
0:17:15 > 0:17:19The worrying thing, it was his head, I mean, he could have passed out on,
0:17:19 > 0:17:20maybe, a 50-foot drop.
0:17:28 > 0:17:33In Fethiye, Turkey, paraglider instructor Sam is about to crash-land after
0:17:33 > 0:17:39his main canopy collapsed on the way down from 6,000 feet.
0:17:39 > 0:17:41I couldn't steer my reserve parachute out of the trouble
0:17:41 > 0:17:44that I was heading into, which was a load of rocks.
0:17:44 > 0:17:47There was a clearing and some very large cedar trees.
0:17:47 > 0:17:50I actually wanted to land in the tree at that point,
0:17:50 > 0:17:52cos the rocks didn't look too nice.
0:17:53 > 0:17:55But with no steering, it's down to fate.
0:17:55 > 0:17:58He's in danger of being impaled by the trees,
0:17:58 > 0:18:01or plunging straight through them to the forest floor.
0:18:01 > 0:18:02I knew I was going in.
0:18:04 > 0:18:06When you're in that kind of thing,
0:18:06 > 0:18:09you've got instinct and a gut desire to survive.
0:18:09 > 0:18:11I was, like, "Please!"
0:18:13 > 0:18:15Sam's camera captures the heart-stopping moment
0:18:15 > 0:18:19he plunges into the trees, praying they'll break his fall.
0:18:22 > 0:18:27His luck holds - he's caught by the branches of a huge cedar tree.
0:18:27 > 0:18:31I landed in the tree 60 foot up, which was another worry.
0:18:31 > 0:18:34The first thing I did was check all my body parts to make sure
0:18:34 > 0:18:36I hadn't had a strike while I was full of adrenaline,
0:18:36 > 0:18:38and you don't feel anything initially.
0:18:38 > 0:18:41Then I started looking around to see how securely I was fastened.
0:18:44 > 0:18:47My reserve parachute had sort of landed behind me
0:18:47 > 0:18:49and the glider had landed in front.
0:18:49 > 0:18:52So, I was spread across, like, two trees, really.
0:18:52 > 0:18:54Sam is dangling above a 60-foot drop
0:18:54 > 0:18:57and can't get out of his harness.
0:18:57 > 0:18:59He's not safe and he knows it.
0:18:59 > 0:19:02He's in a frightening and precarious position,
0:19:02 > 0:19:04but manages to get a phone signal.
0:19:18 > 0:19:20His friend at the landing point, Murat Tuzer,
0:19:20 > 0:19:22is part of the local rescue team,
0:19:22 > 0:19:26but he's more than two hours away over difficult terrain
0:19:26 > 0:19:28and Sam might not have that long.
0:19:28 > 0:19:30I started slipping, I almost ended up sideways,
0:19:30 > 0:19:36almost hanging upside down, staring down 60 foot at the ground.
0:19:36 > 0:19:39I thought it was a good time to call my girlfriend and just tell her I
0:19:39 > 0:19:42love her because I wasn't too sure how this was going to play out.
0:19:43 > 0:19:463,000 miles away, back in Yorkshire,
0:19:46 > 0:19:48Ali takes a call she'll never forget.
0:19:48 > 0:19:52The first thing he said to me was, "Hi, I'm OK.
0:19:52 > 0:19:56"I'm OK." Which I thought, "Oh, that's a bit of a strange one."
0:19:56 > 0:19:57And then he proceeded to sort of,
0:19:57 > 0:20:00sort of unravel that he was up this tree.
0:20:00 > 0:20:03And she said, "Oh, no. Are you OK?"
0:20:03 > 0:20:05And I said, "Yes, I'm OK."
0:20:05 > 0:20:07I wasn't, but I didn't want her to worry too much.
0:20:08 > 0:20:11I just thought, "I'd like to hear your voice and, you know,
0:20:11 > 0:20:13"tell you that I love you."
0:20:13 > 0:20:17Which really made me worry, because I thought, "You don't ring someone
0:20:17 > 0:20:19"to say that unless you're worried yourself."
0:20:19 > 0:20:23And he's usually quite in control, so if he's worried, I'm worried.
0:20:23 > 0:20:26Sam rings off to keep his phone clear.
0:20:26 > 0:20:29His wait for rescue is agonising.
0:20:29 > 0:20:33He's unsure how long the branches can hold his 17½ stone weight
0:20:33 > 0:20:37and the temperature is a searing 40 degrees.
0:20:37 > 0:20:41So after waiting for an hour and a half and I still hadn't seen anybody
0:20:41 > 0:20:44or heard anything, and I'd actually run out of water,
0:20:44 > 0:20:48I was starting to worry about my situation from the point of view of
0:20:48 > 0:20:52possibly spending the whole night up the tree. And whether they'd
0:20:52 > 0:20:56actually find me or not was also starting to be a worry.
0:20:56 > 0:20:59Then the radio Sam's carrying crackles into life.
0:20:59 > 0:21:03It's his friend Murat with a search party of seven, including paramedics.
0:21:03 > 0:21:07I tried to explain that I was on the north side of the mountain,
0:21:07 > 0:21:09probably two-thirds of the way down, in a tree
0:21:09 > 0:21:13and I think I was at the head of an old, dried up gorge.
0:21:13 > 0:21:15So I gave them that information.
0:21:15 > 0:21:18And then, I... Eventually, another ten minutes or so,
0:21:18 > 0:21:20I could start hearing voices shouting to each other
0:21:20 > 0:21:22and that gave me a real sense of hope.
0:21:23 > 0:21:27It's another 30 minutes before Murat and the search party find Sam.
0:21:28 > 0:21:32First reaction, of course, we're happy we see him and then we're
0:21:32 > 0:21:36just looking up the tree and discussing how can we help him,
0:21:36 > 0:21:37and then we start climbing up.
0:21:41 > 0:21:45Basically, he free-climbed the tree, 60 foot up to me.
0:21:45 > 0:21:49They may have found him, but getting Sam down safely is another matter.
0:21:49 > 0:21:50He keeps filming.
0:21:50 > 0:21:54Because he is not close to the main tree, he's on the branch,
0:21:54 > 0:21:57and then far from the tree
0:21:57 > 0:21:59in a very tricky place.
0:21:59 > 0:22:04He was just, like, a move at the wrong moment and he can fall down.
0:22:04 > 0:22:09It was 25 metres and this whole rescue can turn into a big disaster.
0:22:10 > 0:22:13Murat needs to attach Sam to the main trunk of the tree with ropes,
0:22:13 > 0:22:17so if he does fall suddenly, it will only be a few feet.
0:22:17 > 0:22:19He throws Sam a line.
0:22:19 > 0:22:20Got it. Yep.
0:22:21 > 0:22:26I managed to clip in and he started helping me get through to the
0:22:26 > 0:22:27'relative safety of the tree trunk.'
0:22:27 > 0:22:29I can come closer to you.
0:22:31 > 0:22:34The team rig up a pulley system to lower Sam to the ground...
0:22:34 > 0:22:37I've got to try and go this side. Wait - slow, slow.
0:22:38 > 0:22:41..but it's not easy.
0:22:41 > 0:22:42OK, no problem.
0:22:42 > 0:22:44'Pushing myself down the tree was very hard,
0:22:44 > 0:22:46'trying to avoid all the branches'
0:22:46 > 0:22:47that were spiky.
0:22:49 > 0:22:50It's no problem, is it?
0:22:50 > 0:22:54And that feeling when I touched the ground was just like...
0:22:54 > 0:22:56You know, I could have...
0:22:56 > 0:22:57I could have kissed the ground.
0:22:57 > 0:22:59No bother.
0:23:04 > 0:23:06The team help Sam out of his harness,
0:23:06 > 0:23:09give him water and a medic checks him over.
0:23:10 > 0:23:14Amazingly, he's escaped with no injuries.
0:23:14 > 0:23:16Yo! I'm perfect.
0:23:16 > 0:23:17HE SPEAKS TURKISH
0:23:17 > 0:23:21And once Sam's off the mountain, his first task is to text Ali.
0:23:23 > 0:23:27And a few days later, back in Britain, they're reunited.
0:23:27 > 0:23:30Yeah, she was just very pleased to see me, as I was her.
0:23:30 > 0:23:32Both know how lucky he's been.
0:23:32 > 0:23:34Yeah, I think it shook him up a bit.
0:23:34 > 0:23:38I won't count my chickens, but I do think he is calming down a bit.
0:23:39 > 0:23:43I consider myself extremely lucky to still be alive after that.
0:23:43 > 0:23:46Actually, you know, reliving it, it does send me...
0:23:47 > 0:23:51Cold shivers thinking about what...what it could have been like.
0:23:58 > 0:24:01The resort of Les Deux Alpes in France.
0:24:01 > 0:24:04A group of friends are on their last day of a snowboarding holiday.
0:24:06 > 0:24:07Adam films himself,
0:24:07 > 0:24:10but his camera's seen something he hasn't -
0:24:10 > 0:24:16another snowboarder, coming up behind at 40mph.
0:24:16 > 0:24:19The crash takes Adam's feet from under him.
0:24:19 > 0:24:21His friends know this is a bad fall.
0:24:21 > 0:24:24You think, "Wow, this could be really dangerous."
0:24:31 > 0:24:3535-year-old English language teacher Adam lives with his girlfriend
0:24:35 > 0:24:38in Portsmouth. They've just had some great news.
0:24:38 > 0:24:42My girlfriend and I found out we're expecting our first child.
0:24:42 > 0:24:44He's excited by the prospect of being a dad,
0:24:44 > 0:24:47but realises the new responsibilities will mean
0:24:47 > 0:24:49hanging up his beloved snowboard for a while.
0:24:51 > 0:24:54Knowing I've got a kid on the way, it made me realise that, you know,
0:24:54 > 0:24:56I really had to make this time count and enjoy it,
0:24:56 > 0:24:59cos I might not get to do it for a little while.
0:24:59 > 0:25:00For a last holiday with the lads,
0:25:00 > 0:25:03he arranges our week-long break in Les Deux Alpes,
0:25:03 > 0:25:05one of the most famous resorts in France.
0:25:07 > 0:25:10Five of them head off, including best pal Charlie.
0:25:10 > 0:25:14I met Adam 11 years ago on a ski season in Austria.
0:25:14 > 0:25:16And yeah, he's an all-round nice guy.
0:25:16 > 0:25:20They have a great week and decide to make the most of their last day.
0:25:22 > 0:25:25The plan for the day was to kind of go to all the spots we'd found
0:25:25 > 0:25:28that we really liked off-piste, and our favourite pistes,
0:25:28 > 0:25:30and just film it so we had something to document the trip.
0:25:32 > 0:25:35Halfway down one of the slopes, Adam decides to attach his camera
0:25:35 > 0:25:39to a selfie stick so he can film himself in reverse.
0:25:39 > 0:25:41The lads in the group, they just sped off and I sat down and I set up
0:25:41 > 0:25:45the camera, and then I went down behind them about a minute after.
0:25:47 > 0:25:50So I set off, and then the first thing I knew
0:25:50 > 0:25:52about the other person was the moment of impact.
0:25:58 > 0:26:01He's barely got going when another snowboarder
0:26:01 > 0:26:05comes down behind him at speed - around 40mph.
0:26:05 > 0:26:08Adam can't see him and has no time to brace for the collision.
0:26:11 > 0:26:14He's sent flying, but the other boarder carries on.
0:26:18 > 0:26:21My face was hurting, and I looked down and I saw the blood.
0:26:23 > 0:26:24Kind of grabbed my face at first,
0:26:24 > 0:26:26like, checking I hadn't knocked out my teeth.
0:26:26 > 0:26:28That was the first thing I thought had happened.
0:26:28 > 0:26:30At the bottom of the slope,
0:26:30 > 0:26:33Adam's friend Charlie realises something is wrong.
0:26:33 > 0:26:38Looked behind me and saw Adam had unstrapped his board.
0:26:38 > 0:26:43And we could see his face was just covered in blood - just red.
0:26:43 > 0:26:47You think, "Wow, this could be really dangerous."
0:26:47 > 0:26:49Adam's split his lip and broken his nose.
0:26:49 > 0:26:53He photographs his injuries, but they're too gory to show in full.
0:26:53 > 0:26:58He's also badly injured his wrist and might have unseen head injuries.
0:26:58 > 0:27:00He needs medical attention now.
0:27:00 > 0:27:03His friends decide to take Adam down the mountain by chairlift,
0:27:03 > 0:27:06but that's dangerous, too.
0:27:06 > 0:27:07The worrying thing, it was his head.
0:27:07 > 0:27:11I mean, he could have passed out on, maybe, a 50-foot drop.
0:27:11 > 0:27:14And if he had passed out,
0:27:14 > 0:27:16it would have been quite hard to sort of keep him in,
0:27:16 > 0:27:18on the chairlift I guess.
0:27:18 > 0:27:20He's, er...not the smallest guy.
0:27:21 > 0:27:24Charlie has to prop up his friend all the way.
0:27:24 > 0:27:27Adam is treated at the local hospital.
0:27:27 > 0:27:32The injuries that I got from this accident - I broke my nose,
0:27:32 > 0:27:36I had ten stitches going from outside of my lip into my gum.
0:27:36 > 0:27:40And then also broke my wrist and I've now got two metal plates.
0:27:41 > 0:27:44It's not been the pre-baby trip Adam envisaged.
0:27:44 > 0:27:46Knowing that we had a child coming,
0:27:46 > 0:27:48I was being more cautious when I was snowboarding,
0:27:48 > 0:27:51so it's just unfortunate that this accident happened.
0:27:53 > 0:27:55It's going to be a while before I get back on the slopes,
0:27:55 > 0:27:58but I'll definitely be snowboarding again one day.
0:28:05 > 0:28:08Three very different stories today and that's all for now.
0:28:08 > 0:28:11Join us next time for more extraordinary accounts
0:28:11 > 0:28:12from people who've had a close call.