Tonight | I Was Actually There on ABC: the people who lived through the Thredbo landslide – I Was Actually There returns to July 1997 tonight. The episode revisits the Thredbo landslide through the eyes of people who were on the mountain, at 8pm on ABC and ABC iview.
Only people who witnessed the events tell the story in this documentary series. It captures the chaos, fear, adrenaline and humanity of being caught inside history.
This is episode two of six in season three. Last week’s opener told the story behind Julia Gillard’s misogyny speech.
A tragedy that unfolded live
The Thredbo landslide was one of the first Australian tragedies to unfold as a rolling, live media event.
Reporters broadcast from the mountain. Audiences around the country clung to every update.
After 54 hours, the country stopped. News broke that rescuers had found a sole survivor alive.
What I Was Actually There asks
The episode asks what it was like to be there. Some people were on the mountain, hoping their friends would also be found alive.
Others were reporting from the scene. For days, they had stories without hope.
Then there were the rescuers. They fought the freezing cold as well as the landslide itself.
Don’t miss I Was Actually There, Monday 16 November at 8pm on ABC and streaming on ABC iview.
Read TV Central’s episode one highlight, and watch on ABC iview.