In reply to JJL:
several, but the one that erases all others is being in a jeep in pakistan a few years ago, on a mountain road, that was being destroyed as we drove on it by floods and landslides.
caught between two waterfalls that were coming onto the remains of the road our driver (honestly, no older than 16) decided we had to go for it and cross a washed out section that had rock face on one side (with water coming over it) and a maybe 200m drop down tthe other into a massive swollen river of near freezing water.
we went in and it was deeper than expected and a surge of water washed up over the windscreen so we all thought wed actually been submersed for a few looooong seconds. meanwhile the back wheels started loosing traction and were sucking into the pull of the water over the edge.
in some act of chance the front whells maintained traction, and we just pulled up onto the other side, lurching up out of the water that had started to come in the windows. i was in the back cargo section and water was coming in under the door.
there was 8 of us in the jeep and we all assumed that was how it was going to end for us all. f*cking horrible. we had a pakistan liason officer with us and he admitted he had started saying the islamic prayer they recite when death is immenent - something youre only meant to say once.
the whole trip had a few moments of utter terror, but that felt the most final. its the one thing ive woken to nightmares about.