How Did The Survivors In 'Alive: The Story Of The Andes Survivors' Stay Alive?

Reading 'Alive' felt like experiencing their nightmare firsthand. The initial crash killed 12 people instantly, and the remaining 27 faced a frozen hell. Without proper shelter, they transformed the plane’s fuselage into a makeshift cave, blocking gaps with luggage and snow. Food was the biggest crisis—after exhausting chocolate and wine, they debated for days before consenting to cannibalism, rationalizing it as 'giving permission' to use their bodies if they died. Spiritual beliefs played a huge role; some saw it as communion, others as a necessary evil.

Their organization was key. They assigned roles—some melted snow, others tended wounds (using alcohol from the plane as disinfectant). To prevent despair, they maintained routines: 'meals' at set times, daily prayers, even a soccer game with a ball made of rags. When an avalanche buried their shelter, killing eight more, the survivors dug each other out and rebuilt. The final trek by Nando Parrado and Roberto Canessa was a masterclass in navigation—using a battery from the plane to melt snow in their mouths during the day, following ridges to avoid crevasses. Their survival wasn’t luck; it was systematic adaptation against impossible odds.

The psychological aspect fascinates me. Many credit their rugby team’s discipline for their cohesion, but what stuck with me was their refusal to romanticize the ordeal. In interviews, survivors emphasized how ordinary they were—just kids who chose life over dignity, moment by moment. The book’s raw detail about hunger (gnawing on leather shoes) and hallucinations makes their resilience even more astonishing.

What shocked me about the Andes survivors wasn’t just the cannibalism—it’s how they redefined teamwork under pressure. These weren’t seasoned explorers; they were college athletes and friends who turned desperation into innovation. They repurpose everything: broken glass became knives for cutting flesh, seat cushions became insulated boots. One guy survived a skull fracture by letting others drain the pooled blood daily with a makeshift syringe. Their hierarchy was fluid—leadership shifted based on who had energy to think clearly.

Their emotional resilience was as vital as physical tactics. When hope faded, they focused on micro-goals: 'Today, we fix the roof.' 'Tonight, we melt three liters of water.' Dark humor helped—joking about which body parts 'tasted better' kept morale from collapsing. The two who hiked out did so in dress shoes stuffed with newspaper, following riverbeds downstream for 72 hours without sleep. Modern survival experts still study their strategies, like using urine to mark trails in snow. Their story proves that in dire situations, creativity beats brute strength every time.

The survivors in 'Alive: The Story of the Andes Survivors' pulled off one of the most extreme feats of human endurance ever recorded. Stranded in freezing mountains after their plane crashed, they had to make brutal choices just to stay breathing. Their first move was scavenging whatever food they could find from the wreckage, but when that ran out, they turned to the unthinkable—eating the bodies of the dead. Morality took a backseat to survival. They melted snow for water, huddled together for warmth, and used seat covers as blankets. The cold was relentless, dropping to -30°C at night, but they rotated sleeping positions so no one froze to death. When rescue seemed impossible, two guys hiked for 10 days straight through the mountains without gear until they found help. Their willpower was insane—no superpowers, just raw human grit pushing past every limit.