Chilling moments caught on GoPro. From a surprise volcanic eruption to a dramatic plane crash played out on camera, we take a look at 8 terrifying moments caught on GoPro that you have to see.
8. Ontake Eruption
On September 27, 2014 at around midday, Mount Ontake suddenly erupted taking hundreds of hikers by surprise.
Mount Ontake is a volcano located on the island of Honshu, Japan, around 100 kilometres northeast of Nagoya. It’s a popular tourist spot, with dozens of scenic hiking trails crisscrossing the mountain.
In the footage, we see several hikers ascending a steep ridge. In the distance you can see a gigantic plume of volcanic ash rising into the air. It gradually gets larger and larger as it takes over the blue skyline. I wonder if they used a gimbal with their GoPro? Maybe they learned about them from websites similar to https://topgimbals.com if they did.
The hiker’s initial reaction seems to be one of awe, as they process what exactly they’re witnessing. Then as the cloud of hot ash descends upon them, panic sets in. They begin to scramble down the slate covered mountain, before becoming consumed by smoke and debris.
According to reports, there was no significant seismic activity to warn the hikers. Experts believe the eruption to be hyrdovolcanic, a process by which underground water is super heated, rapidly turning into steam, ejecting gas and ash high into the air.
7. Bridge Collapse
This scary footage caught on GoPro was taken by French hikers walking through Lake Waikaremoana national park in New Zealand in September 2015.
In the footage we see the the four tourists crossing the thin, Hopu Ruahine bridge in Hawkes Bay. As they approach the middle of the wire crossing it suddenly kinks, throwing the hikers into the river below. They thrash and tumble in the murky water before swimming to shore.
Luckily, all four hikers survived the incident with only minor injuries.
An investigation into the incident confirmed that the bridge was designed to carry up to 10 people, however it gave way under the weight of just four adults.
The Department of Conservation operations manager Mike Slater said that the bridge gave way after a ‘release’ of one of the cables. He assured the public that the occurrence was extremely rare.
It’s not known whether the hikers received compensation for their extreme close call.
6. Hunted by a Shark
In mid-2013, fisherman caught some scary GoPro footage while trailing bait behind their sports fishing boat in Maryland, U.S.
During the clip we see half a dozen fishing lines, rigged with bait, trailing in the briny waters. In the distance you can make out the snout of a shark. It holds for a moment before explosively attacking the baited lines. The shark snatches the fish and retreats into the gloomy backdrop. One by one, it viciously bites the fish until they’re all gone.
Experts identified the shark as a mako. These ancient hunters are on record as the fastest-swimming sharks in the world. They can gain 18.8 metres in just one second.
The females of the species are the largest and can weigh over 600 kg (1300 lb) with a length of around 3.8 m (12 ft). There were reports in 1881 in Italy, of a mako shark that weighed 1000 kg (2,200 lb).
Looking at this footage, it’s terrifying to see how easily one of these creatures could hunt a hapless swimmer or diver.
5. GoPro Shark Photo
RedditSticking with sharks for a moment. This GoPro photo was submitted to a thread on Reddit. It shows the terrifying moment a shark swam by a surfer’s foot.
Allegedly, the person who took this footage had spent the day surfing and didn’t know what had happened until they reviewed their footage for the day. There in the photo is the chilling outline of a shark trailing through the water. It’s barely a metre away from their legs.
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