Ever come across a thing that you think should not be true? Well, there are plenty of such things that seem false, but believe it or not, they are true. Some facts surprise us, some force us to use big brain time and some give us useful knowledge about different things, but some facts are so absurd that they absolutely horrify us. Here’s our list of 10 such horrifying facts that are sure to startle you.

1 After surviving a sinking ship, Ramon Artagaveytia went through serious mental trauma for decades. He is one of those 65 passengers who survived the fire and sinking of the ship America in 1871. After recovering from his dreadful trauma, his next sea voyage happened to be on the Titanic.

On 24 December 1871, the ship  America was trying to race another ship into the Montevideo harbor which resulted in high pressure in the boiler and gave rise to a fire.

In total, there were 164 passengers on the ship including first, second, and popular class. Only 65 of them survived. The ship sank near the shore of Punta Espinillo, Uruguay.

Ramon jumped into the sea and saved himself by swimming for his life, but just before that, he saw so many of the people burning alive and the horrible scene became the primary reason for his mental trauma that he went through for decades. 

In a letter to his cousin, he wrote how he was experiencing nightmares and hearing the voices of men shouting “Fire! Fire! Fire!” going through his head.

For the next 40 years after the incident, he stayed off the ships but finally, on 10 April 1912, he boarded the Titanic to visit the US. (source)

2 An Australian pilot, Frederick Valentich, during a training flight, suddenly disappeared altogether with his Cessna light aircraft. He mentioned that he was being followed by an aircraft, but his last words were, “It’s not an aircraft!”

On the eve of 21 October 1978, Fredrick was going through his 252-kilometer training flight and he disappeared without a trace when he was over the Bass Strait. 

Fredrick was 20 years old when this happened, and the young man was described as a “flying saucer enthusiast.” During the flight, he reported to Melbourne air traffic control that he was being followed by another aircraft just 300 meters above him, and the engine of his own plane was running roughly. However, his last words sound totally astounding when he said, “No, it’s not an aircraft!” 

The later reports say that there were actually some sightings of UFOs in Australia on the night when he disappeared, but the Associated Press has collected some contrary data from the Department of Transport, and they say that they are not so sure about the UFO reports.

Some of the officials from the Department of Transport say that the young man was disoriented and was flying upside down. What they think he saw were his own reflections in the water, or he was deluded by the lights coming from a nearby village. (source)

3 There is a rare disease called “fatal familial insomnia” which can completely destroy your ability to sleep. It is incurable, and you can die within a few months or years if you’re diagnosed with it. 

Fatal familial insomnia is primarily a degenerative brain disorder and is genetic in nature. The gradual inability to sleep is the one major symptom that is evident in this disease. Other disturbing symptoms include the inability to speak properly, loss of coordination, decreased cognitive and mental functions. 

The disorder is caused by only one reason, a mutation in DNA. There is a 50% chance of inheriting the disease by a child if one of the parents is diagnosed with it.  

There is no cure for the disease except temporary sleeping medications. A person diagnosed with the disease goes through stages where he/she is unable to sleep first, then experiences hallucinations, delirium, seizures, and finally dies. The average duration of survival is just 18 months. 

The first person who met with such a catastrophe was an Italian who died in 1765 in Venice.

(1, 2, 3)

4 Tigers have been observed to seek vengeance on people who have wronged them. It is also recorded by an American writer, John Valliant, in his famous thriller, “The Tiger.”

There is a famous Russian thriller story that is backed by a true incident. The story is “The Tiger,” and was written by John Valliant. 

In the story, a poacher named Vladimir Markov first shot a tiger to injure him and steal his food. The tiger did not try to get away despite being injured and waited for the hunter to come again.

He waited for approximately two days, and when Vladimir returned, the tiger tore his body to pieces and ate it after dragging him into the bushes.

The fact that his primary reason for the attack was vengeance is based on what he did between that long stretch of time of 48 hours. The tiger literally destroyed every piece of material which had Vladimir’s scent. 

Not just that, some days later the tiger killed another man who was the head of the local squad of the anti-poaching unit. The tiger observed him be a person saving humans, and that was a good enough reason for him to kill the man. (1, 2)

5 During a surgery when anesthesia is used, there is a very small percentage of about 0.1% – 0.2% that the patient may regain consciousness during the procedure, yet he/she would not be able to make any physiological movement. This also means the patient will feel the pain during the entire surgery but won’t be able to speak out loud to the doctors around.  

The phenomenon is also called “accidental awareness during general anesthesia” (AAGA). The consciousness is felt by the patient on different layers during the surgery.

There is a wide range of devastating psychological consequences to the patient who experiences it. One such consequence could be post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), which is a serious psychological disorder and needs professional counseling help. 

The bizarre condition is caused due to the relatively inadequate supply of anesthetics with relation to the patient’s body. 

Patients who dealt with this horrifying situation have reported their experiences that they were feeling very vague, dreamlike, immobilized, and of course in extreme pain during surgery. (source)