Season 1

A new series that tells the real-life stories of people who faced life-threatening events, yet somehow found the courage and strength to survive against all odds. In this episode, Bridget Kelly is raped, shot three times, and left for dead by an intruder in her home; Daryl is caught in a freak blizzard that threatens to bury him alive in his jeep; and two boys, Ryan and John, survive a plane crash and maintain cell phone contact with a 911 operator as rescuers desperately try to find them.

Brandi and her friend offer a ride to man who turns on them. Joseph and two other men are stranded on a rocky, barren island for 13 days. And Sam and Suzanne are kidnapped by a hitchhiker who forces them to drive several hundred miles at gunpoint.

Christine's and Heidi's trip on a Greek ferry becomes a nightmare when the boat begins to sink and the crew abandons the ship, leaving the panicked passengers to fend for themselves. Debbie suffers a five-day ordeal at the hands of an attacker, who keeps her blindfolded and gagged, rapes her, and forces her to sleep next to him. And a simple act of kindness results in a vicious assault for Jim when he is brutally attacked in his apartment by his neighbor after inviting the young man into his home to chat.

Lonnie plays dead for four agonizing hours after her boyfriend chokes her and shoots her four times in the head. Rulon, a super-strong Olympic wrestler, gets stuck in a semi-frozen stream when he goes snowmobiling and faces a big decision -- should he wait to be rescued or submerge himself in the freezing water to save his snowmobile and find a way out? And when a wise-cracking federal prosecutor is abducted by men with machine guns, he uses his unique talents and personality to show rapport with his captors in hopes they'll release him.

When Dollar Store manager Denise is savagely attacked by robbers, one thing keeps her alive. Nick is stranded on a mountain in a blizzard. And Leonilda must quickly think of a way to escape when her boyfriend forces her into his car at gunpoint.

Wayne and Mary woke up to find their farmhouse surrounded by a cloud of lethal chlorine gas following a rail derailment. While Holly and her boyfriend Chris were taking a quiet stroll near the railroad tracks, they were accosted by a man demanding money.

Cari is brutally stabbed, beaten, and sexually assaulted by an intruder in her home, but knows she must survive the attack to save her son. And, a four-inch steel tow hook accidentally lodges in a Kevin's throat.

Three masked gunmen burst into Michelle's home and order her to rob the bank vault where she works or they'll blow up her little girl. And teenagers Troy and Josh take a small sailboat out to an inlet, when they get swept out to sea for six days.

Maria feared for her safety as one of her fellow employees at the hospital where she worked became increasingly volatile. Jerry swerved his car to avoid a deer and crashed over an embankment where a tree branch became lodged in his throat.

This episode tells the harrowing story of how two students and a professor at Virginia Tech University managed to survive the April 16, 2007, massacre at the school. One of the students, Colin, had to lay motionless and play dead as the gunman shot him four times. We also chronicle the amazing story of the Minneapolis school bus with 52 children that plummeted 45 feet when a Minneapolis bridge collapsed in August 2007. Trapped in her seat, driver Kim held the brake, keeping the bus from rolling backwards, as counselor Jimmy and his co-workers rush to evacuate the children, including Kim's own daughter.

A young lawyer must use all of her instincts to fight off an intruder; Sampson is a corn farmer faced with an agonizing decision; and Norina, a primary school principal, must fight off a crazed man with a machete to save the lives of her students.