| Situation Critical | |
|---|---|
| Also known as | Critical Situation |
| Genre | Documentary,Disaster, Survival |
| Narrated by | Rufus Jones (UK) John Benjamin Hickey US |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 13 |
| Production | |
| Running time | 43-50 minutes |
| Production companies | Darlow Smithson Productions,National Geographic Society |
| Original release | |
| Network | National Geographic Channel |
| Release | June 12, 2007 (2007-06-12) – October 2007 (2007-10) |
| Related | |
Situation Critical (also known asCritical Situation in the US) is an American/British-produced documentary television programme.[1][2] Produced in conjunction with theNational Geographic Channel, the series examined variousdisasters or violent incidents. It was intended to extendSeconds from Disaster's brand to disasters that don't necessarily have an official investigation. The main tagline of the show reads, "This isSituation Critical," or some variation thereof. 13 episodes were created for the show.
| Ep# | Episode title | Situation | Date of situation | Nature of situation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "North Hollywood Shootout" ("Hollywood Shootout") ("North Hollywood Heist") ("Hollywood Heist") | North Hollywood shootout | February 28, 1997 | Bank robbery, gunfight |
| When two police officers of theLos Angeles Police Department noticed two criminals robbing a branch of theBank of America inNorth Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, they called the local police department for support. A gun battle lasting almost 45 minutes ensued; one criminal committed suicide, the other was killed by the S.W.A.T. team. | ||||
| 2 | "Taliban Uprising" | Battle of Qala-i-Jangi | November 25 – December 1, 2001 | Prison revolt |
| Hundreds of inmates tried to shoot their way out of a makeshift prison forTaliban fighters in Afghanistan with television reporters trapped in the crossfire. | ||||
| 3 | SAS Jungle Rescue ("Operation Certain Death") | Operation Barras | August 25 – September 10, 2000 | Hostage crisis |
| Twelve soldiers carrying out a patrol through a jungle inSierra Leone were taken hostage by a group of rebels. They were eventually rescued. | ||||
| 4 | Apollo 13 | Apollo 13 | April 11–April 17, 1970 | Oxygen tank explosion, emergency landing |
| An explosion aboard Apollo 13 in space resulted in the lunar mission being aborted and a subsequent emergency landing. | ||||
| 5 | Downed Pilot | Rescue ofScott O'Grady | June 2, 1995 | Shootdown, manhunt and rescue |
| BosnianSerb andUnited States military forces hunt for a pilot after he is shot down while flying overBosnia and Herzegovina in anF-16 Fighting Falcon. | ||||
| 6 | Hell on High Water | 1998 Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race | December 26, 1998 | Thunderstorm |
| A severe storm disrupts the 1998 Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race and destroys several yachts. | ||||
| 7 | Killing Pablo Escobar ("Killing Pablo") | Capture of Pablo Escobar | December 2, 1993 | Manhunt, criminal capture |
| Wanted drug lord Pablo Escobar is shot and killed while trying to evade capture. | ||||
| 8 | Moscow Theatre Siege ("Moscow Siege") | Moscow theatre hostage crisis | October 23–26, 2002 | Hostage crisis |
| 40 armed members of theSpecial Purpose Islamic Regiment took 850 theatre goers hostage at the Dubrovka Theatre inMoscow, culminating in a rescue operation that resulted in the deaths of the terrorists, but also of many of the hostages due to the gaseous substance used during the counterattack to subdue the terrorists. | ||||
| 9 | Assault On Entebbe | Air France Flight 139 | June 27 – July 4, 1976 | Aircraft hijacking, hostage rescue |
| Air France Flight 139, originating fromTel Aviv, takes off fromAthens. Minutes later, it is hijacked by twoPalestinians from thePopular Front for the Liberation of Palestine – External Operations (PFLP-EO) and twoGermans from the German "Revolutionary Cells". The hostages were eventually rescued from the old terminal ofEntebbe International Airport inUganda byIsrael Defense Forcesspecial forces troops. | ||||
| 10 | Russian Sub Rescue ("Running Out of Air") | AS-28 training accident | August 4–7, 2005 | Submarine entanglement, undersea rescue |
| Priz AS-28, a miniaturesubmarine of theRussian Navy, becomes entangled in sunken fishing nets and the cables of ahydrophone array at a depth of 190 m in Berezovaya Bay off the coast of theKamchatka Peninsula. 2 days later, the submarine was successfully freed with no loss of life, thanks to the aid of a Britishremotely operated vehicle. | ||||
| 11 | Al Qaeda Ambush | Battle of Takur Ghar | March 3, 2002 | Meeting engagement |
| Members ofUnited States Navy SEALs are ambushed byAl-Qaeda forces. During the initial ambush and subsequent battle, threeChinook helicopters were lost before the SEALs and reinforcements consisting of units of the75th Ranger Regiment brought the engagement to a conclusion. | ||||
| 12 | Miracle at Quecreek ("Coal Mine Disaster") | Quecreek mine rescue | July 24–28, 2002 | Mine shaft flooding |
| At the Quecreek Mine inSomerset County, Pennsylvania, coal miners accidentally dug into the poorly documented Saxman Mine, causing 500 million tonnes of underground water to flood the Quecreek mine. All nine miners trapped by the water were eventually rescued. | ||||
| 13 | Nightmare on Mount Hood ("Nightmare on Mt. Hood") | 2002 climbing accident | May 30, 2002 | Climbing accident, fall intocrevasse, helicopter crash |
| Seven climbers trying to scale the slopes ofMount Hood fall into a crevasse calledThe Bergschrund on the mountain, resulting in the deaths of three of the climbers. ASikorsky HH-60 Pave Hawk of theUSAF rescues the three climbers, but then crashes and rolls during its attempt to fly clear of the mountain, additionally injuring the five crew members on board. Both the crew and the surviving climbers make it out of the crash alive. | ||||
Emily Ashby ofCommon Sense Media wrote, "Suspenseful and well crafted,Critical Situation is an addiction waiting to happen for adults, but be wary about sharing it with kids, since it's full of graphic, violent re-enactments of gun battles and vehicular crashes.[3]Rocky Mountain News's Mike Pearson had a positive review of the documentary aboutPablo Escobar, stating, "Killing Pablo plays like a real-life thriller: violent, unpredictable and filled with high-tech gadgets."[4]
Writing inThe Age, Brad Newsome said, "Pick any episode of Situation Critical and you'll get an amazing story told clearly and concisely by people who were there."[5] AnotherThe Age review stated, "The Israeli special forces' daring rescue of the passengers of a hijacked airliner in Entebbe, Uganda, in 1976 is an amazing tale. It's also a fairly complicated one that could have become a muddle in the hands of lesser documentary makers. The folks behindSituation Critical, however, excel at weaving classy dramatisations, fine computer graphics and interviews with key players into clear, compelling narratives."[6]