Frane Selak’s “luck” stems from his survival of a series of extremely improbable,
Life-threatening accidents, including a train derailment, a plane crash, a bus plunging into a river, and several car crashes and explosions, often with multiple other people dying in the same incidents. After cheating death multiple times, he then won the lottery, further solidifying his legendary status as a man impossibly fortunate.
The “Accidents”
Selak’s extraordinary series of close calls allegedly began in 1962 with a train derailment where he survived the plunge into a river, followed by more incidents in the following decades:
1962: A train derails and plunges into a river, but Selak swims to safety with only minor injuries.
1963: A door on his airplane flies open, and he is sucked out, landing in a haystack while the plane crashes, killing everyone else on board.
1966: A bus crashes into a river, but Selak survives.
1970s/1990s: He experiences several car accidents and explosions, including one where he jumps from his car to a tree just before it explodes.
1995: Selak is hit by a bus, though he suffers only minor injuries.
1996: His car is forced off a cliff by another vehicle, but a tree catches him.
Winning the Lottery
Adding to his bizarre story, in 2003, Selak bought a lottery ticket for the first time in years and won a jackpot of approximately $1 million.
His Perspective
Selak himself didn’t consider himself lucky for surviving; rather, he viewed his experiences as being “unlucky to be in them in the first place”.
A Life of “Luck” His survival of multiple accidents and subsequent lottery win have led him to be known as the “luckiest unlucky man in the world”.
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