The CRUX: True Survival Stories

In this explosive episode of The Crux True Survival Story Podcast, hosts Kaycee McIntosh and Julie Henningsen dive into five days of pure terror on the high seas. When four armed Somali pirates stormed the Maersk Alabama in 2009, Captain Richard Phillips made a split-second decision that would either save his crew—or cost him his life. What followed was a heart-pounding standoff in a sweltering li...

On December 20th, 1980, 19-year-old Jean Hilliard experienced what doctors call medically impossible. After her car slid off an icy road in rural Minnesota during a blizzard with temperatures at -22°F, Jean made the difficult decision to walk two miles through whiteout conditions to reach her friend Wally Nelson's farmhouse. Dressed only in cowboy boots and a winter coat, she battled brutal winds...

In 2002, 23-year-old French snowboarder Marco Siffredi vanished without a trace while attempting to snowboard down Mount Everest's treacherous Hornbein Couloir. This gripping episode of Disaster Strikes explores the tragic story of an elite extreme athlete whose deadly obsession with conquering Everest's most dangerous descent route led to one of mountaineering's most haunting mysteries. Discover...

Picture this: You're a medical professional on a routine work trip when suddenly you're playing a real-life game of survival that makes Bear Grylls look like a weekend camper. Meet Tiffany Slaton, the dialysis tech from Georgia who accidentally became the Sierra Nevada's most badass temporary resident. What started as just another day at the office turned into a 24-day masterclass in "how to not d...

This gripping episode explores one of climbing's most harrowing incidents—the 2000 kidnapping of four young American climbers in Kyrgyzstan's remote mountains. Tommy Caldwell, Beth Rodden, Jason Singer Smith, and John Dickey were world-class athletes with a North Face sponsorship to establish first ascents on untouched granite walls. Their dream expedition turned into a nightmare on August 12, 200...

Get ready for the most unbelievable survival story you've ever heard. Hosts Kaycee McIntosh and Julie Henningsen deliver a jaw-dropping tale that sounds like Hollywood fiction but is 100% real—and it happened at 400 mph, 17,000 feet above ground. Picture this: June 10th, 1990. British Airways Flight 5390. Thirteen minutes after takeoff, the cockpit windscreen explosively blows out, and Captain Tim...

In this episode of 'The Crux: Disaster Strikes,' host Julie Henningsin delves into the harrowing story of the cargo ship El Faro, which sank near The Bahamas on October 1st, 2015, claiming all 33 lives on board. Through the recovered voyage data recorder, we gain a chilling insight into the ship's final hours. Henningsin explores the crew dynamics, the weather challenges, and the human errors that...

In this episode of The Crux True Survival Story Podcast, hosts Kaycee McIntosh and Julie Henningsen explore the ill-fated voyage of the Karluk during the 1913 Canadian Arctic Expedition. They discuss the questionable leadership of expedition organizer Vilhjalmur Stefansson, the concerns about the ship's seaworthiness, and the harrowing events that followed when the vessel became trapped in ice. Th...

In this episode of The Crux True Survival Story Podcast, hosts Kaycee McIntosh and Julie Henningsen delve into the allure and dangers of Mount Fuji. They discuss the historical significance and the cultural importance of Japan's tallest peak, which attracts hundreds of thousands of climbers annually. The episode covers the tragic yet sensational story of a climber who had to be rescued twice withi...

In this episode of Disaster Strikes, host Kaycee McIntosh tackles the dangers of carbon monoxide poisoning, often referred to as the 'silent killer.' This episode examines real-life tragedies, explaining how carbon monoxide exposure occurs and the devastating effects it can have on the human body. McIntosh emphasizes the importance of prevention through the use of carbon monoxide detectors and pro...

In this episode, join Julie Henningsen and Kaycee McIntosh as they dive into the astonishing story of Dr. Alain Bombard, a French physician and biologist who, in 1952, undertook an audacious scientific experiment. To prove that humans could survive adrift at sea using only ocean resources, Bombard set off to drift across the Atlantic Ocean in a small inflatable dinghy, without food or water. Over...

This episode of The Crux True Survival Story Podcast follows the remarkable tale of 2-year-old Boden Allen who survived a seven-mile journey through the hazardous Arizona desert, thanks to the protective instincts of a ranch dog named Buford. Host Kaycee McIntosh delves into the Allen family's terrifying ordeal, the resilience of young children in wilderness situations, and the heroics of Great Py...

In this episode of 'Disaster Strikes,' host Julie Henningsin dives into the haunting story of Randy Morganson, a legendary backcountry ranger who vanished without a trace in California's Sierra Nevada Mountains in 1996. This episode explores Randy's life, his profound connection to the wilderness, and the tragic series of events that led to his disappearance. Over nearly three decades, Randy was k...

In this episode of the Crux True Survival Story Podcast, hosts Julie Henningsen and Kaycee McIntosh delve into the harrowing survival story of the crew of the USS Indianapolis, which sank in July 1945. The episode covers the catastrophic events leading up to and following the ship's sinking, where the crew faced extreme conditions, including dehydration, exposure, and shark attacks. The hosts disc...

In this episode of The Crux, Kaycee McIntosh and Julie Henningsen, delve into the terrifying encounters between humans and polar bears. The episode recounts the harrowing survival stories of individuals like Matt Dyer and Elijah Carner, who faced life-threatening polar bear attacks in remote Arctic regions. The hosts discuss the increasing frequency of such encounters due to climate change, which...

In this inaugural episode of the new podcast segment 'Disaster Strikes,' host Kaycee McIntosh, joined by Julie Henningsen, explores a tragic outdoor adventure case. They recount the story of four German tourists who vanished in Death Valley in 1996, leading to one of the park’s most enduring mysteries. Through an in-depth examination of their journey and the subsequent discovery of their remains o...

In this episode of The Crux True Survival Story Podcast, hosts Julie Henningsen and Kaycee McIntosh explore the harrowing experience of Rear Admiral Richard Evelyn Byrd in Antarctica during the winter of 1934. Byrd, already famous for his polar explorations, volunteered for a solo mission to collect meteorological data in a tiny buried shack during the Antarctic winter. With temperatures plummetin...

In this episode of Crux True Survival Stories, host Kaycee Macintosh revisits the remarkable survival story of Matt Ruem, who endured six grueling days trapped in his truck after an accident on I-90 in Indiana. From enduring severe injuries and contaminated rainwater to the complex rescue operation and difficult medical decisions, including the amputation of his left leg, Matt shares his transform...

Content Warning: This episode contains discussions about suicide. If you or someone you know is struggling with thoughts of suicide, please reach out for help: National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 988 Crisis Text Line: Text HOME to 741741 International Association for Suicide Prevention: https://www.iasp.info/resources/Crisis_Centres/ This episode explores attempted suicide. While we believe thes...

In this episode of 'The Crux True Survival Story Podcast,' medical professionals and wilderness survival enthusiasts Julie Henningsen and Kaycee McIntosh recount the dramatic tale of the Coast Guard's rescue of the HMS Bounty crew during Hurricane Sandy in October 2012. The episode delves into the fateful decisions made by Captain Robin Walbridge, the harrowing experiences of the 16 crew members,...

In this episode of the Crux True Survival Story Podcast, hosts Kaycee McIntosh and Julie Henningsen bring you the extraordinary tale of David Finlayson and his 13-year-old son Charlie—a story that redefines courage in the face of disaster. When their August 2015 climbing expedition in Idaho's remote Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness took a devastating turn after a massive boulder struck D...

In this episode of 'The Crux True Survival Stories,' hosts Julie Henningsen and Kaycee McIntosh delve into the extraordinary life of Colton Harris Moore, also known as the Barefoot Bandit. The episode explores Colton's troubled childhood, his years-long crime spree of burglaries, plane thefts, and his controversial rise to folk-hero status. The hosts discuss his remarkable self-taught survival ski...

The Coldest Night: Rob Gering's 12-Hour Fight for Survival In this episode of Crux True Survival Stories, host Kaycee McIntosh interviews Rob Gering, who recounts his harrowing experience of surviving a snowmobile crash in subzero temperatures in northern Wisconsin. On a frigid February night, Rob was left immobilized with multiple broken bones and faced down in the snow for over 12 hours. His sur...

In this episode of The Crux True Survival Stories, hosts Kaycee McIntosh, joined by Julie Henningsen, delves into the tragic survival story of the Kim family. What began as a joyful Thanksgiving 2006 road trip from San Francisco to Seattle, ended in a perilous and fatal detour through Oregon's Bear Camp Road. The episode details the Kim family's struggle for survival, the critical search and rescu...

In this powerful episode, we sit down with Matt Potratz, a former professional snowmobiler whose life changed forever in a devastating avalanche in 2009. Before the accident, Matt was living what many would consider a dream life - a successful career as a general sales manager at a Toyota dealership and appearances in seven different snowmobile motion pictures. But in just 12 seconds, everything c...