Against The Odds

Latest Episodes:

Alone in Antarctica | The Windiest Place on Earth | 1 Jul 08, 2025

Show notes

It’s 1912, the golden age of Antarctic exploration, and teams from the Australasian Antarctic Expedition are preparing to journey into the wilderness. One trio, led by the Australian geologist Douglas Mawson, will venture the farthest — traversing 700 miles roundtrip of uncharted territory. But when his journey takes a disastrous turn, Mawson will have to endure what the mountaineer Sir Edmund Hillary called, “The greatest survival story in the history of exploration.

Order your copy of the new Against the Odds book, How to Survive Against the Odds: Tales & Tips for Animal Attacks and Natural Disasters, for stories of everyday people confronted by life-or-death situations, showing you how they survived—and how you can too. Learn more at SurvivalGuidebook.com.

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Oceanos: Rescue off the Wild Coast | Into the Waves | 4 Jul 01, 2025

Show notes

In August 1991, Lorraine Betts set sail aboard the Oceanos as cruise director, overseeing passenger entertainment and well-being. But when the lights went out and the ship began taking on water, it wasn’t the captain who led the evacuation—it was Lorraine and a small group of entertainers who sprang into action. Today, she joins host Cassie De Pecol to share her firsthand account of the night the Oceanos sank.

Later, author Sean Evans joins Cassie to discuss the new Against the Odds book, How to Survive Against the Odds, available now wherever you get your books. Learn more at SurvivalGuidebook.com.

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Oceanos: Rescue off the Wild Coast | Sink or Swim | 3 Jun 24, 2025

Show notes

With all the lifeboats launched, the remaining passengers aboard the Oceanos cling to railings as the ship lists hard to one side. When helicopters arrive, the entertainment crew springs into action again—coordinating a high-stakes airlift as rescuers lower cables from the sky. But as dawn breaks, the ship edges ever closer to capsizing. Out at sea, mothers aboard lifeboats hand over their babies in buckets hoisted to the decks of towering cargo ships.

Order your copy of the new Against the Odds book, How to Survive Against the Odds: Tales & Tips for Animal Attacks and Natural Disasters, for stories of everyday people confronted by life-or-death situations, showing you how they survived—and how you can too. Learn more at SurvivalGuidebook.com.

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Oceanos: Rescue off the Wild Coast | Abandon Ship | 2 Jun 17, 2025

Show notes

As a hellish storm batters the Oceanos off the South African coast, senior crew members flee aboard a lifeboat, leaving passengers behind. With no leadership in sight, the entertainers step up, guiding women and children into the last remaining lifeboats as the ship begins to list dangerously in the churning sea. Out on the water, mothers clutch their infants as waves batter the tiny boats, tossing them mercilessly through the darkness.

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Oceanos: Rescue off the Wild Coast | “Just A Precaution” | 1 Jun 10, 2025

Show notes

On the night of August 3, 1991, the cruise ship Oceanos sets sail from South Africa’s eastern cape with 571 people aboard—despite a massive storm barreling up the coast. Soon, a breach in the hull knocks out power, and the ship begins taking on water. As senior officers abandon ship, the fate of everyone on board falls to the ship’s entertainers, who must lead a mass evacuation before the Oceanos vanishes beneath the waves.

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An Exclusive Excerpt From Our New Book | 1 Jun 03, 2025

Show notes

We’ve got a new book! How to Survive Against the Odds: Tales & Tips for Animal Attacks and Natural Disasters is out today from Wondery and HarperCollins. Go inside life-or-death situations where everyday people survived nature’s most extreme scenarios—and learn how you can, too, with expert insights and survival tips.

In this episode, we’re sharing an exclusive sample chapter from the audiobook. How to Survive Against the Odds is available now in digital, print and audiobook editions from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or wherever you get your books. Learn more at SurvivalGuidebook.com.

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Mount St. Helens | Still Alive | 4 May 27, 2025

Show notes

Rescue helicopters finally reach the campers, Sue and Bruce, as well as other stranded survivors like TV reporter David Crockett and logger Jim Scymanky. But with nightfall approaching, Sue worries that rescuers won’t be able to find her injured friends, Dan Balch and Brian Thomas, in time. With the roads onto the mountain impassible, blocked by trees and debris, rescuers' only chance of reaching survivors quickly is by helicopter. But the thick ash blanketing the landscape makes landing the copters a major challenge — if ash gets caught in the rotors, they risk crashing. Meanwhile, the logging team and the campers who suffered severe burns are in desperate need of medical attention. As their chance of surviving dwindles, camper Sue Ruff faces the repercussions of deciding to leave her friends behind.

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Mount St. Helens | Blast Zone | 3 May 20, 2025

Show notes

The survivors of the Mount St. Helens eruption find themselves in an alien world, with toppled trees, mudslides, and thick, hot ash covering everything. Unsure when or if rescue is coming, campers Sue Ruff and Bruce Nelson must make a difficult decision: whether to stay with their injured friends, or leave them behind, in order to get help faster.

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Mount St. Helens | Hell on Earth | 2 May 13, 2025

Show notes

When Mount St. Helens erupts, Sue Ruff and her boyfriend Bruce Nelson are camping with four friends about 14 miles north of the volcano. They were told this was well out of range of any eruption, but soon they find themselves caught in a searing-hot cloud of ash and debris, fighting for their lives.

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Mount St. Helens | Awakening | 1 May 06, 2025

Show notes

In March 1980, after 120 years of dormancy, the volcano Mount St. Helens in Washington State begins showing signs of life. Scientists warn that a major eruption is coming, but they’re unable to completely block off access to the mountain. Some locals, like lodge owner Harry Truman, refuse to leave. And on May 18, when the volcano finally explodes, 150 people are caught in the deadly path of destruction. Pre-order your copy of the new Against the Odds book, How to Survive Against the Odds: Tales & Tips for Animal Attacks and Natural Disasters, for stories of everyday people confronted by life-or-death situations, showing you how they survived—and how you can too.

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