Tell Me What Happened

About Tell Me What Happened

Every day we wake up not knowing exactly what will happen: A sportswriter finds himself drowning in a frozen canal, a hiker gets hit by lightning, and a service tech rolls his van off the road and into a cemetery. What they all have in common is that they were all saved by a stranger. Tell Me What Happened, the award-winning original podcast by OnStar, returns for a sixth season of stories about people helping people. Each episode also includes a conversation with an expert to provide context and advice about what to do if you find yourself in a dangerous situation.

Publisher

OnStar

Category

society & culture · society & culture · society & culture

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

10 Nov 2021

Latest episode

10 Aug 2026

Latest episodes

8 of 52 episodes have a transcript.

1. 

   10 Aug 2026TRANSCRIPT

   A Daring Whitewater Rescue

   Host Daniel Hartung shares his harrowing whitewater rescue story and discusses safe Alaskan travel with an expert.

2. 

   20 Apr 2026TRANSCRIPT

   Escaping the Palisades Fire

   Host Jennifer Oteng interviews Andrew Lin and Aaron Samson about their harrowing rescue during the Palisades Fire, highlighting emergency preparedness for vulnerable individuals.

3. 

   6 Apr 2026TRANSCRIPT

   Heatstroke in the Superstition Mountains

   While on vacation, Colt Johnson went in search of a little fresh air and headed toward Arizona’s Superstition Mountains. Five hours into his hike, he began to feel lightheaded. He knew the heat was probably getting to him. His water was gone. Colt started losing his balance, and then his body started to fail. He laid down under a thorny bush and passed out. Before that, however, he fired three shots into the sky and hoped someone heard them. We also talk with Tami Hew-Butler about the dangers of dehydration and of having too much water.

Inside a recent episode

A Daring Whitewater Rescue

Published 10 Aug 2026 · Transcript excerpt

[…] The really great thing about Alaska is that the highlights that you think of, like glaciers, wilderness, happen all over the state. I am based in Anchorage. And so from here, easy car rides are, it's about two and a half hours to Seward, which is the gateway to Kenai Fjords National Park, which is, you know, water-based. You take a day cruise, you're seeing these massive tidewater glaciers that meet the ocean. You might see whales. Sea otters, sea lions is just incredible. And then if you go north from here, Denali National Park is another big highlight. And there you're in the high tundra. So kind of the trees disappear and it's just jagged mountains in the Alaska Range and Mount Denali in all of its glory. […]

Who has been a guest on Tell Me What Happened

Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.

• Alaskan travel expert
• Drew Ashley
• Janet He
• Meredith Ehn

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

Apple Podcasts (US)

4.7 / 5

430 ratings

Spotify

4.8 / 5

140 ratings

Contact Tell Me What Happened

Guest appearances

Books guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.

Questions about Tell Me What Happened