History HeroicSacrifice / RealLife

* A group Heroic Sacrifice -- United Flight 93 on September 11th. After learning that three other planes had been used as weapons against thousands, [[BadAssBystander passengers]] [[YouShallNotPass assaulted their hijackers]], [[TakingYouWithMe knowing it would probably lead to their deaths]]. [[EverybodyDies It did]], but [[BittersweetEnding countless lives were saved]] at wherever the intended target site was (according to captured al-Qaeda members, it was most likely the U.S. Capitol). Various cell phone calls to loved ones indicate that [[DeathIsTheOnlyOption the passengers knew exactly what they were doing and there was no chance of surviving.]]

* The [[GonzoJournalism journalist]] and writer Creator/RodolfoWalsh was killed during the [[UsefulNotes/NationalReorganizationProcess last Argentinian military dictatorship]] in a trap that he was aware of: Another victim of political persecution called him for help. Aware of the dangers of leaving his refuge in the Tigre Islands, he still chose to go. He couldn't live with himself in case the call was real. He died after a long fight with the para-military forces, [[DefiantToTheEnd standing his ground]] while being shot [[MadeOfIron repeatedly in the chest.]]

* In 1967, 12-year-old [[https://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/news/the-eternal-flame-6421957 Susie Keidel]] woke up to find her house on fire[[note]]it's now believed the fire was intentionally set by their father to [[SheKnowsTooMuch silence Susie and her sister Lori]], who had seen him kill their mother[[/note]]. Rather than get out of the house as quickly as possible, Susie first went from room to room to wake her three younger siblings and try to get them out as well. When her youngest sibling, 5-year-old Lori, ran back to her room to save a toy (likely not comprehending the extent of the danger she was in), Susie again gave up a chance to escape in order to try and guide Lori out, and both of them ended up being cut off from the exit as the fire spread. With no way out, Susie covered Lori with her own body to shield her from the flames. When rescuers arrived, they found Lori badly burned but still alive under the body of her sister.
* Marian Fisher, age 13, the oldest of ten girls taken hostage in the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amish_school_shooting Amish school shooting]] in 2006: [[https://abcnews.go.com/TheLaw/story?id=2531138 "Shoot me first"]]
* [[https://www.theage.com.au/world/philippine-man-loses-own-life-after-saving-dozens-from-floods-20090928-g8o4.html Philippine man loses own life after saving dozens from floods]].

* While driving home with his pregnant wife, [[https://www.theprovince.com/news/North+final+saves+family/3487150/story.html Brian Wood]] noticed that a car was crossing the center line and heading straight for them. With no time to avoid a crash, Brian swerved to the right [[TakingTheBullet so that he would take the full force of the collision]], [[BabiesEverAfter saving his wife and unborn child.]]
** The depressing thing about this is the reason the other car was out of control. ''The driver was trying to take her sweater off without stopping''.

** [[https://earthquakestrips.blogspot.com/2008/06/strip-8-last-lesson.html A teacher's last lesson]]. While the authenticity of the story (publicized by the Chinese government) has been put in doubt [[note]]by only one source, The Epoch Times, which has anti-Chinese views[[/note]], the comic is a true TearJerker, and the magnitude of the disaster might have created many similar, unsung heroic sacrifices.
* [[https://uk.news.yahoo.com/5/20110113/twl-teen-hero-drowns-after-brother-saved-3fd0ae9.html 'Teen Hero' Drowns After Brother Saved First]].
* In July 2020, Creator/NayaRivera and her four-year-old Josey were swimming in a lake in Southern California and drifted from their boat some time in the mid-afternoon. He was found sleeping on the boat by himself later that eventing wearing a life vest and they found her purse and were able to get him back to his family. The police can’t know for certain exactly what happened because the witness was a four-year-old but from what he told them and other evidence, they believe that she tried to swim back to the boat with him against the current and successfully used the last bit of energy she had to save him and was too exhausted to either lift herself onto the boat or fight the current and drowned.
* Two months earlier, former WWE star Shad Gaspard and his 10-year-old son Aryeh were caught in a rip current just off Venice Beach in Los Angeles. A rescue boat came out to the middle of the current with a "rescue can", a buoy-like device to tow distressed swimmers to safety. However, Aryeh was unable to secure the can because of the size of the waves around them. The lifeguard had an impossible choice—who to save? Shad made the choice for him, telling him "take my son." Within minutes, Aryeh was safely on shore, and the lifeguard returned to where Shad was caught, catching a glimpse of him before the current took him under. Shad's body washed ashore three days later, but he was hailed as a hero.

* [[https://www.dailynews.com/news/ci_17423843?source=rss Glenn Allen]], a devoted firefighter is killed in the line of duty trying to save the home of two residents, [[TearJerker and only days before his first grandchild was born.]]

** As a corollary: all of the old people [[https://mb.melmyfinger.com/post/6131047852 who willingly line up to clean radiation in Fukishima]] qualify as badass grandpas [[NeverMessWithGranny or grannies]], exposing themselves to radiation so younger people won't have to. The highest levels involved may result in an increased risk of cancer from twenty to forty years in the future, so they figure they don't have as much to lose.

** Fujio Koshita, at 57 the senior Otsuchi firefighter, died standing on top of the firehouse ringing the old warning bell, because the March 11th earthquake killed all electrical power in the town. His bell was heard ringing through the town until the tsunami swept him, and the firehouse, away. According to other firefighters, he violated his own rule about rescue workers; “Don’t die. Rescuers must stay alive” because your job is to help other people.

* On May 24 2008, Film/HarryPotter actor Robert Knox saved his younger brother from a deranged knife wielder at a pub, losing his life in the process.

* Michael Monsoor, US Navy SEAL; a grenade landed on a roof where he was part of an overlook. He jumped on it and sacrificed his life, taking the brunt of the blast and keeping the shrapnel from hitting any of his friends. He was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor.

* A couple of [[HeroicDog canine examples]] of this trope; [[https://news.sky.com/home/world-news/article/15220504 George]], a Jack Russell in New Zealand who was killed defending five kids from a pair of vicious pit bulls; and [[https://dogsinthenews.com/stories/070301a.php Chief]], a pit bull in the Philippines who sustained a fatal bite protecting two women from a cobra. There's also [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1pWrfpacFKc a Doberman whose name was not revealed by the request of its owners]], protecting its 8 owners from four cobras, [[{{Determinator}} continuing to fight despite being bitten numerous times]] until [[TakingYouWithMe it killed the four cobras before succumbing to the venom.]]

* [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maximilian_Kolbe Saint Maximilian Maria Kolbe]] was a Polish Catholic priest who first was a missionary and thus went WalkingTheEarth for years. During UsefulNotes/WorldWarII, this BadassPreacher was imprisoned in the Auschwitz concentration camp for openly speaking out against the Nazi regime through both a newspaper and a private radio station, and sheltering (among others) 2,000 Jews. He willingly went into the hunger bunker in place of of another prisoner, a Polish soldier who had a wife and kids[[note]]Tragically, neither of his two children survived the war, both having died in Soviet bombings months away from its end[[/note]]; he continued to calmly celebrate Holy Mass in the cell for the other prisoners, and was finally killed by a fatal injection of phenol after all the other prisoners had already died of starvation. He was made a saint on October 10 1982 by Pope John Paul II, and the man whose life he saved was there.

** It may be worth noting that, according to Wikipedia, Victoria Soto, along with five other employees, was posthumously awarded the Presidential Citizens Medal for "exemplary deeds or services performed for one's country or fellow citizens." This award is the Second Highest civilian award in the United States, second only the Presidential Medal of Freedom and its military equivalent, the Medal of Honor.

* [[https://web.archive.org/web/20140407042216/https://gma.yahoo.com/mom-succumbs-cancer-6-weeks-giving-birth-231713382.html Elizabeth Joice]] who was diagnosed with cancer in 2010 became pregnant last year and the cancer resurfaced during her pregnancy forcing her to choose between saving herself with treatment but endangering her unborn child, or going without treatment so her child would be unaffected while putting her own life at risk. [[MamaBear She chose to put her child's needs ahead of her own and successfully gave birth to her healthy baby girl Lily.]] [[DownerEnding Unfortunately, after her daughter was born, the cancer had spread all over her abdomen,]] [[TearJerker and she died six weeks after her daughter's birth.]] [[GoOutWithASmile She said that she had no regrets]] [[FaceDeathWithDignity as she would easily make the same choice again if she had to.]]

* W. S. Gilbert (the first half of Creator/GilbertAndSullivan) died while rescuing a drowning woman; she survived, but he (being 74 years old!) suffered a heart attack from the strain.

** [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Axon John Axon]]. On 9 February 1957, he was driving a goods train from Buxton to Stockport. Near the summit at Dove Holes, a steam pipe burst, disabling the locomotive brake and whistle, rendering the crew unable to contact the banking engine to tell it to stop. Axon stayed with his engine as the train ran away downhill, trying to shut off steam and use the tender brake to stop. He was killed when the train crashed into the back of another freight train at Chapel-en-le-Frith, but due to his actions, the signalman at Dove Holes was able to warn the staff at Chapel-en-le-Frith to evacuate a passenger train that was waiting at the adjacent platform.

* After a female Octopus lays her eggs, [[MamaBear she will stand guard over them for their entire 53-month-long incubation period.]] She won't even leave to find food and will instead resort to [[{{Autocannibalism}} eating one or more of her own arms.]] By the time they hatch, she's on the cusp of starvation.

* On [[https://www.cnn.com/2017/03/10/us/beyond-the-call-of-duty-murphy-wisconsin/index.html August 5, 2012]], when a white supremacist opened fire at a Sikh temple in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, the first police officer on the scene was Lt. Brian Murphy. Murphy encountered the shooter in the parking lot, confronted him, and was shot in the face, after which the shooter pursued him and fired another 14 shots into him at close range. This confrontation is thought to have been critical in saving the lives of civilians still in the temple, as it kept the shooter occupied long enough for backup to arrive, preventing him from reentering the temple to continue his rampage[[note]]survivors later noted that the number of shots Murphy took was the exact same as the number of people hiding in a temple pantry who would likely have been the shooter's next targets, which further fueled the narrative of Murphy's sacrifice, with some of these survivors outright stating that they felt Murphy had literally taken a bullet for each of them[[/note]]. Furthermore, after the shooter was down, Murphy, badly injured but still alive and conscious, waved off officers who came to his rescue, telling them to assist the civilian victims inside the temple first. Murphy miraculously survived, though he was forced to retire from the police force due to the extent of his injuries. In 2015, Murphy was awarded the Medal of Valor for his actions during the massacre.

* Ross [=McGinnis=], a nineteen year old private first class in the US Army at the time, was killed in action when he dived on top of a live grenade dropped by an insurgent into his Humvee and saved four other soldiers from either serious injury or death. He was posthumously promoted to specialist and, like others before him, awarded the Medal of Honor for this act. But what makes this instance perhaps particularly noteworthy is that Ross himself was in the gunner turret at the time: [[WhatYouAreInTheDark he was the only one who could have jumped from the vehicle in time to save himself.]]

** [[https://earthquakestrips.blogspot.com/2008/06/strip-3-just-one-more.html]] An ''attempted'' sacrifice by some rescuers. They were informed that rushing back inside a collapsed school, which had already buried 100 dead children in concrete, would be suicide. Some decided to charge back in anyway when they hear that there were some children left alive. They had to be dragged out, with the last soldier screaming and begging to let him save just one more. Eventually, when they came back in, there was only a single child alive in the ruin. She was carried at a run through the rain by the last soldier to the first aid station.

* Two stories from the Sichuan Earthquake:

* On [[https://www.cnn.com/2017/03/10/us/beyond-the-call-of-duty-murphy-wisconsin/index.html August 5, 2012]], when a white supremacist opened fire at a Sikh temple in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, the first police officer on the scene was Lt. Brian Murphy. Murphy encountered the shooter in the parking lot, confronted him, and was shot in the face, after which the shooter pursued him and fired another 14 shots into him at close range. This confrontation is thought to have been critical in saving the lives of civilians still in the temple, as it kept the shooter occupied long enough for backup to arrive, preventing him from reentering the temple to continue his rampage[[note]]survivors later noted that the number of shots Murphy took was the exact same as the number of people hiding in a temple pantry who would likely have been the shooter's next targets, leading many to frame the incident as Murphy taking one bullet for each of the civilians who were saved by his actions[[/note]]. Furthermore, after the shooter was down, Murphy, badly injured but still alive and conscious, waved off officers who came to his rescue, telling them to assist the civilian victims inside the temple first. Murphy miraculously survived, though he was forced to retire from the police force due to the extent of his injuries. In 2015, Murphy was awarded the Medal of Valor for his actions during the massacre.

* Ross [=McGinnis=], a nineteen year old private first class in the US Army at the time, was killed in action when he dived on top of a live grenade dropped by an insurgent into his Humvee and saved four other soldiers from either serious injury or death. He was posthumously promoted to specialist and, like others before him, awarded the Medal of Honor for this act. But what makes this instance perhaps particularly noteworthy is that Ross was in the gunner turret at the time: [[WhatYouAreInTheDark he was the only one who could have jumped from the vehicle in time to save himself.]]

* Ross [=McGinnis=], a nineteen year old private first class in the US Army at the time, dived on top of a live grenade dropped by an insurgent into his Humvee and saved four other soldiers from either serious injury or death. He was posthumously promoted to specialist and, like others before him, awarded the Medal of Honor for this act. But what makes this instance perhaps particularly noteworthy is that Ross was in the gunner turret at the time: [[WhatYouAreInTheDark he was the only one who could have jumped from the vehicle in time to save himself.]]

* Ross McGinnis, a nineteen year old private first class in the US Army at the time, dived on top of a live grenade dropped by an insurgent into his Humvee and saved four other soldiers from either serious injury or death. He was posthumously promoted to specialist and, like others before him, awarded the Medal of Honor for this act. But what makes this instance perhaps particularly noteworthy is that Ross was in the gunner turret at the time: [[WhatYouAreInTheDark he was the only one who could have jumped from the vehicle in time to save himself.]]

* During the 1995 Tokyo Subway Attack, when members of Aum Shinrikyo unleashed sarin gas on several train lines, the ones on the Chiyoda Line were quickly discovered. After stopping at Kasumigaseki Station, three attendants worked to dispose of them by hand. Two of them were fatally poisoned and died within minutes.

* [[https://gma.yahoo.com/mom-succumbs-cancer-6-weeks-giving-birth-231713382.html Elizabeth Joice]] who was diagnosed with cancer in 2010 became pregnant last year and the cancer resurfaced during her pregnancy forcing her to choose between saving herself with treatment but endangering her unborn child, or going without treatment so her child would be unaffected while putting her own life at risk. [[MamaBear She chose to put her child's needs ahead of her own and successfully gave birth to her healthy baby girl Lily.]] [[DownerEnding Unfortunately, after her daughter was born, the cancer had spread all over her abdomen,]] [[TearJerker and she died six weeks after her daughter's birth.]] [[GoOutWithASmile She said that she had no regrets]] [[FaceDeathWithDignity as she would easily make the same choice again if she had to.]]
** [[https://screen.yahoo.com/cute-and-inspiring/inland-empire-mother-makes-ultimate-012500439.html Ashley Bridges]] has a very similar story, as she was diagnosed with bone cancer a few weeks into her pregnancy and was told to get treatment before the cancer spread which would mean terminating her pregnancy. She refused and successfully gave birth to her daughter Paisley several months later, but by that time the cancer had already run its course and spread throughout her body. Even though the doctors gave her less than a year to live, she says she has absolutely no regrets about her decision.

** It may be worth noting that, according to Wikipedia, Victoria Soto, along with five other employees, was posthumously awarded the Presidential Citizens Medal for "exemplary deeds or services performed for his or her country or fellow citizens." This award is the Second Highest civilian award in the United States, second only the Presidential Medal of Freedom and its military equivalent, the Medal of Honor.

* During the 1995 Tokyo Subway Attack, when members of Aum Shinrikyo unleashed sarin gas on several train lines, the ones on the Chiyoda Line were quickly discovered. After it made a stop, three station attendants worked to dispose of them by hand. Two of them were fatally poisoned and died within minutes.

* During the 1995 Tokyo Subway Attack, when members of Aum Shinrikyo unleashed sarin gas on several train lines, the ones on the Chiyoda Line were quickly discovered. After it made a stop, the three station attendants worked to dispose of them by hand. Two of them were fatally poisoned and died within minutes.

* On September 4, 1876, the James-Younger gang attempted to rob the bank in Northfield, Minnesota. Acting cashier Joseph Lee Haywood was ordered to open the bank's safe, but refused. He was promptly murdered, but his refusal halted the gang in their tracks long enough for the rest of the townsfolk to arm themselves. When it was all over, two members of the gang were dead and the rest were running for their lives.

** [[https://earthquakestrips.blogspot.com/2008/06/strip-8-last-lesson.html A teacher's last lesson]]. While the authenticity of the story (publicized by the Chinese government) has been put in doubt [[note]]by only one source, The Epoch Times, which has [[Administrivia/RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgment anti-Chinese views]][[/note]], the comic is a true TearJerker, and the magnitude of the disaster might have created many similar, unsung heroic sacrifices.

* 10-year-old [[https://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2016/02/26/kiera-larsen-dies-saving-toddlers_n_9328050.html Kiera Larsen]] got hit by a rolling car after pushing two toddlers out of the way, and died in the hospital from her injuries. Thanks to her sacrifice, the toddlers got away with only minor injuries.

* [[https://web.archive.org/web/20090223180535/https://www.orble.com/7yr-old-dies-protecting-his-sister/ Zhenya Tabakov]], a 7-year-old boy, died while protecting his 12-year-old sister from a rapist.

{{User sandbox}}
<!-- EDIT BELOW THIS LINE -->
There will one day be a subject here.

* [[http://web.archive.org/web/20090223180535/http://www.orble.com/7yr-old-dies-protecting-his-sister/ Zhenya Tabakov]], a 7-year-old boy, died while protecting his 12-year-old sister from a rapist.

* JustForFun/{{Termite|s}} soldiers will go out of their mound in the event of a breach to hold off the enemy (usually ants) while the workers rebuild. Sealing the soldiers out.

* [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Falling_on_a_grenade Falling on a grenade]] is definitely a qualifier for this trope.

* Subverted, if the story behind the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Burghers_of_Calais "Burghers of Calais" sculpture]] is to be believed: the six noblemen of the town who offered themselves in exchange for the town's safety ended up alive after it all, and the statue depicts them as not so much "heroic" as defeated and weary, but conscious of duty.

* First Lieutenant [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_R._Fox John Robert Fox]] called fire on his own position on December 26 1944 in a successful attempt to stall a German advance. His body was located in a counter-attack the next day, along with those of around 100 German soldiers.
** Echoing this action in March 2016, Russian Special Forces officer [[http://sputniknews.com/russia/20160329/1037166120/russian-hero-palmyra-named-father.html Alexander Prokhorenko]], who was embedded in Syria providing artillery intelligence on strategic Daesh locations, was discovered and surrounded. He [[https://www.funker530.com/airstrike-transcript-russian-operatives-last-words/ repeatedly ordered]] his superiors to target his position so that he would "die with dignity" and take them with him.

* Captain [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lawrence_Oates Lawrence Oates]], member of the Terra Nova Expedition (and expedition to the South Pole). While returning from the center of the South Pole with another three people (they were five but one died) his condition started to get worse due to frostbite and scurvy, slowing the others. He realized that due to him slowing them down the others wouldn't be able to survive. So, he asked them to [[GoOnWithoutMe leave him behind]]; when they [[NoOneGetsLeftBehind refused]], he said ''"I'm just going outside and may be some time"'', he put his boots and walked out of his tent into a -40 °C blizzard.

* Marian Fisher, age 13, the oldest of ten girls taken hostage in the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amish_school_shooting Amish school shooting]] in 2006: [[http://abcnews.go.com/TheLaw/story?id=2531138 "Shoot me first"]]
* [[http://www.theage.com.au/world/philippine-man-loses-own-life-after-saving-dozens-from-floods-20090928-g8o4.html Philippine man loses own life after saving dozens from floods]].
* [[http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2006/mar/26/nuclear.russia Emergency personnel who responded to the 1986]] [[UsefulNotes/{{Chernobyl}} Chernobyl nuclear disaster]], many of whom realized they were exposing themselves to lethal levels of radiation and condemning themselves to painful deaths by rushing in to contain the damage caused by the ruptured and burning reactor but did so anyway.

* While driving home with his pregnant wife, [[http://www.theprovince.com/news/North+final+saves+family/3487150/story.html Brian Wood]] noticed that a car was crossing the center line and heading straight for them. With no time to avoid a crash, Brian swerved to the right [[TakingTheBullet so that he would take the full force of the collision]], [[BabiesEverAfter saving his wife and unborn child.]]

* Ryan Arnold saved his older brother Chad Arnold's life by giving him two-thirds of his liver for a transplant,[[note]]A significant number of liver transplants now involve a living donor because unlike other internal organs, the liver can regenerate itself as long as enough of it is left.[[/note]] but died three days after the surgery was [[http://www.nbcnews.com/id/40094048/ns/health-health_care/t/brothers-transplant-gift-carries-unbearable-cost/ completed]].

** [[http://earthquakestrips.blogspot.com/2008/06/strip-2-boy-who-lived.html A boy was found alive]] beneath the body of his mother on all fours. She had held the rubble with her back, preventing it from falling on her peacefully sleeping son.
** [[http://earthquakestrips.blogspot.com/2008/06/strip-8-last-lesson.html A teacher's last lesson]]. While the authenticity of the story (publicized by the Chinese government) has been put in doubt [[note]]by only one source, The Epoch Times, which has [[Administrivia/RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgment anti-Chinese views]][[/note]], the comic is a true TearJerker, and the magnitude of the disaster might have created many similar, unsung heroic sacrifices.
* [[http://uk.news.yahoo.com/5/20110113/twl-teen-hero-drowns-after-brother-saved-3fd0ae9.html 'Teen Hero' Drowns After Brother Saved First]].

* [[http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/lookout/nypd-officer-dies-helping-save-seven-family-members-150111140.html NYPD Officer Arthur Kasprzak]] dies after saving seven family members from rising flood waters in his house after the devastation of Hurricane Sandy.
* When the Halifax Explosion of 1917 was about to erupt, train dispatcher [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vince_Coleman_%28train_dispatcher%29 Vince Coleman]] had an opportunity to flee, but remembered that a train was due in town any minute. He stayed at his post and transmitted the following telegraph: "Hold up the train. Ammunition ship afire in harbor making for Pier 6 and will explode. [[FaceDeathWithDignity Guess this will be my last message. Good-bye boys.]]" Coleman was killed at his post, while the trains involved stopped a safe distance away from the explosion, saving hundreds of lives. What's more, the message was communicated throughout the rail network, allowing other dispatchers to immediately respond, rerouting traffic and sending relief supplies.
* [[http://www.dailynews.com/news/ci_17423843?source=rss Glenn Allen]], a devoted firefighter is killed in the line of duty trying to save the home of two residents, [[TearJerker and only days before his first grandchild was born.]]
* [[http://www.aolnews.com/2011/03/06/louisiana-mom-jalisa-granger-dies-protecting-baby-from-tornado/ Jalisa Granger]], a young mother who died sheltering her baby during a tornado.
* [[http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_thelookout/20110527/us_yblog_thelookout/husband-gave-life-to-save-wife-from-tornado-he-was-my-hero Don Lansaw]] jumps on top of his wife Bethany to protect her from a tornado and saves her life, but sadly dies in the process.
* Compared to Chernobyl, the [[http://gizmodo.com/#!5782440/50-fukushima-heroes-work-on-as-radiation-levels-soar Fukushima 50]] are (hopefully) an {{aver|tedTrope}}sion. They are carefully being rotated to limit their total exposure to within international safety standards for emergency workers (with only a handful of cases where those have been marginally exceeded by accident), and thus far nobody is believed to have received any genuinely dangerous doses. [[http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-16212057 The generators have now stablised]], though cleanup is still needed.
** As a corollary: all of the old people [[http://mb.melmyfinger.com/post/6131047852 who willingly line up to clean radiation in Fukishima]] qualify as badass grandpas [[NeverMessWithGranny or grannies]], exposing themselves to radiation so younger people won't have to. The highest levels involved may result in an increased risk of cancer from twenty to forty years in the future, so they figure they don't have as much to lose.
* Following the March 11, 2011 earthquake, [[http://mainichi.jp/select/weathernews/news/20110314k0000m040103000c.html Miki Endo]], a young Crisis Management worker in Minami Sanriku near Sendai, broadcasted a tsunami warning and was credited with saving the lives of nearly 7,000 people in her town. In recently salvaged recordings from the broadcast, her co-workers can be heard pleading with her to evacuate as the tsunami approached. But she stayed at the mic, warning people to flee until the more-than-ten-meter wave crushed the building she was broadcasting from.

* Arland Williams, the "sixth passenger" of [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air_Florida_Flight_90 Air Florida Flight 90]]. When the plane crashed in the icy Potomac River, he and five other survivors scrambled to the tail section of the destroyed aircraft. Twice he was tossed a lifeline from a helicopter. Twice he handed it off to others more severely injured than himself. When the chopper returned again he had slipped below the surface, the only victim to die by drowning. Notably, Williams had a lifelong fear of water, making it even more awesome.
* The [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Four_Chaplains Four Chaplains]] on a crowded World War II troop ship. When it was torpedoed, the chaplains handed out life jackets to the men who made it onto the deck. When the life jackets ran out, they gave away their own.

* Everybody on the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tablets_on_the_Memorial_to_Heroic_Self_Sacrifice Memorial to Heroic Self Sacrifice]] tablet in Postman's Park, London.

* [[http://news.yahoo.com/a-family-remembers--hero-of-9-11-gave-life-to-save-thousands.html Richard "Rick" Rescorla]] saved over 2500 people by leading them to safety during the 9-11 attack, and died in the process.

* A mother in Springfield, Massachusetts, saved her young daughter by shielding her with her body while a tornado destroyed their home. [[http://www.wpri.com/dpp/news/massachusetts/springfield-mother-killed-in-tornado-saves-daughter]]
* A shooting between gangs occurs near an elementary school with innocents caught in the crossfire. A mother [[http://www.myfoxny.com/dpp/news/vigil-held-for-slain-brooklyn-mom-20111023-gjw shielded her daughter from the gunfire and lost her life protecting her child.]]

* Kansas City Chiefs running back [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Delaney Joe Delaney]] dove into a lake despite his own inexperince in swimming to save three drowning children. Sadly, not only did Delaney lose his life in the process, but only one of the three children survived.
* [[http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/lookout/man-paralyzed-diving-creek-save-girl-235043884.html Michael Patterson]] jumped into a creek to save a four year old girl who had fallen in. He saved the girl, but was paralyzed from the chest down from the injuries he sustained while saving her.
* A couple of [[HeroicDog canine examples]] of this trope; [[http://news.sky.com/home/world-news/article/15220504 George]], a Jack Russell in New Zealand who was killed defending five kids from a pair of vicious pit bulls; and [[http://dogsinthenews.com/stories/070301a.php Chief]], a pit bull in the Philippines who sustained a fatal bite protecting two women from a cobra. There's also [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1pWrfpacFKc a Doberman whose name was not revealed by the request of its owners]], protecting its 8 owners from four cobras, [[{{Determinator}} continuing to fight despite being bitten numerous times]] until [[TakingYouWithMe it killed the four cobras before succumbing to the venom.]]
** [[http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/lookout/dog-killed-while-saving-owner-train-190740869.html Also this story]] about a dog who saved his suicidal owner's life by moving him off of some train tracks when his owner collapsed and passed out as a train was coming by. The owner was fortunate and quickly taken to the hospital but the dog sadly died when the train collided with him. This type of UndyingLoyalty is exactly ''why'' dogs are properly referred to as "Man's Best Friend".
** In 1996, a dog named Chief [[http://www.cbsnews.com/news/doggy-dna-hounds-murderers/ attempted to save his owners, Raquel Rivera and Jay Johnson, during a home invasion]]. Unfortunately they were both killed, and Chief died of his wounds; but ironically, Chief's blood was found on the killers' clothing, and was part of the evidence used to convict them.
** Lucy the pit bull [[http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/lucy-pit-bull-saves-lisa-potts-from-stabber_us_56781b49e4b06fa6887dde24 lost her life]] defending her owner's mother from a violent ex-boyfriend. Despite being stabbed in the neck, Lucy refused to stop fighting and succumbed to her wounds the next day.
* [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maximilian_Kolbe Saint Maximilian Maria Kolbe]] was a Polish Catholic priest who first was a missionary and thus went WalkingTheEarth for years. During UsefulNotes/WorldWarII, this BadassPreacher was imprisoned in the Auschwitz concentration camp for openly speaking out against the Nazi regime through both a newspaper and a private radio station, and sheltering (among others) 2,000 Jews. He willingly went into the hunger bunker in place of of another prisoner, a Polish soldier who had a wife and kids[[note]]Tragically, neither of his two children survived the war, both having died in Soviet bombings months away from its end[[/note]]; he continued to calmly celebrate Holy Mass in the cell for the other prisoners, and was finally killed by a fatal injection of phenol after all the other prisoners had already died of starvation. He was made a saint on October 10 1982 by Pope John Paul II, and the man whose life he saved was there.
* [[http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/aurora-shooting-died-bullets-sweeties-article-1.1119395#ixzz21TPAUdXi Three men died by shielding their girlfriends from gunfire]] during the Aurora theater shooting.
* Similar to the Casey Jones and Yuri Gagarin examples above, [[http://host.madison.com/news/article_1d3826f8-2420-520e-89e8-e2d69b806a7d.html Gerald Stull]] stayed at the cockpit of his failing plane so that it would crash in the lake rather than the city of Monona, Wisconsin.

* [[http://gma.yahoo.com/mom-succumbs-cancer-6-weeks-giving-birth-231713382.html Elizabeth Joice]] who was diagnosed with cancer in 2010 became pregnant last year and the cancer resurfaced during her pregnancy forcing her to choose between saving herself with treatment but endangering her unborn child, or going without treatment so her child would be unaffected while putting her own life at risk. [[MamaBear She chose to put her child's needs ahead of her own and successfully gave birth to her healthy baby girl Lily.]] [[DownerEnding Unfortunately, after her daughter was born, the cancer had spread all over her abdomen,]] [[TearJerker and she died six weeks after her daughter's birth.]] [[GoOutWithASmile She said that she had no regrets]] [[FaceDeathWithDignity as she would easily make the same choice again if she had to.]]

* [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicola_Calipari Nicola Calipari]], a high-ranking officer of the Italian Secret Services, in 2005. He had obtained the liberation of journalist Giuliana Sgrena from an Iraqi insurgent group and was taking her to Baghdad airport, when an American roadblock crew opened fire with on the Italians' car. By Sgrena's direct account, Calipari jumped in front of her and pinned her on the bottom of the car to shield her from the gunfire, dying in the process.
* [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gare_de_Lyon_rail_accident Gare de Lyon rail accident]]: On June 27, 1988, André Tanguy, a French train driver, realized that a runaway train was headed straight for his fully-loaded train and began ordering passengers to evacuate over the intercom. As the train barreled towards him at high speed, Tanguy remained in his cab, repeating the warning and the evacuation order until the moment of impact -- keep in mind that the cab was going to be the first thing the incoming train hit. Tanguay was one of 56 people killed in the collision, a number that would have likely been much higher if not for Tanguay's actions.
* [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_Slotin Louis Slotin]] became a fatality in the second criticality accident to happen at Los Alamos, months after Harry K. Daghlian, Jr was killed from the same experiment with a plutonium core. The Canadian born physicist and chemist was working with a split sphere of beryllium metal, similar to the tungsten carbide Daghlian was working with, when he, like Daghlian before him, accidentally let the pieces come together, creating a blue radioactive glow. Slotin placed his body between the sphere and the other people in the room and subsequently pulled away the top of the sphere with his bare hands, ending the reaction and saving the lives of the spectators. Slotin received a fatal amount of radiation, ultimately dying on May 30, 1946, but he was recognized by the both his native Canada and the United States for his brave sacrifice and considered a hero for doing so.
* [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cleveland_Elementary_School_shooting_(San_Diego) Cleveland Elementary School]] principal, Burton Wragg, heard gunshots and both he and Mike Suchar, a custodian, ran to save as many children as they could. Both men lost their lives and 8 children were hurt in the shooting, but it could have been much worse.
* In 1944, [[http://web.archive.org/web/20060704165450/http:/www.house.gov/sherman/press_room/press/pr_020501_medalofhonor.htm Ben L. Salomon]], an American dentist of Jewish background, was working to treat his patients at a field hospital in Saipan when a troop of Japanese soldiers invaded. When they started to kill people inside, Salomon decided to let the Japanese know that they messed with the wrong person and ordered every innocent person, both healthy and wounded, to leave as he stayed to [[TakingYouWithMe take out up to 100 enemy soldiers]] before [[DyingMomentOfAwesome dying of the injuries he got in the fight]].
* [[http://www.latimes.com/nation/nationnow/la-na-nn-hiker-family-killed-a-colorado-family-20131001,0,64030.story This Colorado dad]] gave his life so that his teenage daughter would have a chance to survive.
* [[http://news.yahoo.com/teen-dies-saving-classmates-suicide-bomber-223018543--abc-news-topstories.html Aitzaz Hasan]], a 14 year old, stopped a suicide bomber from entering his school and sacrificed his life to protect his fellow students.

* On January 26 2016, [[http://www.cnn.com/2016/01/26/us/indiana-school-bus/ Principal Susan Jordon]] of an elementary school near Indianapolis, Indiana, witnessed a bus suddenly jump the curb and was rolling at two of her students. She rushed and pushed them out of the way. While they did go to the hospital, their injuries were non-life-threatening. Principal Jordon, sadly, was fatally struck.

* Despite the knowledge that she was about to be subjected to a horrifically grisly fate, in her final moments, [[http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-33672037 Xiang Liujuan]], a 30-year-old mother managed to push her child away to safety as the escalator panel beneath her collapsed.

* There are certain species of spiders the females of whom are eaten by their young shortly after they hatch. In effect, the spider literally sacrifices herself to give the next generation a chance at life.

* [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maximilian_Kolbe Saint Maximilian Maria Kolbe]] was a Polish Catholic priest who first was a missionary and thus went WalkingTheEarth for years. During UsefulNotes/WorldWarII, this BadassPreacher was imprisoned in the Auschwitz concentration camp for openly speaking out against the Nazi regime through both a newspaper and a private radio station, and sheltering (among others) 2,000 Jews. He willingly went into the hunger bunker in place of of another prisoner, a Polish soldier who had a wife and kids[[note]]Tragically, neither of his two children survived the war, both having died in Soviet bombings months away from its[[/note]]; he continued to calmly celebrate Holy Mass in the cell for the other prisoners, and was finally killed by a fatal injection of phenol after all the other prisoners had already died of starvation. He was made a saint on October 10 1982 by Pope John Paul II, and the man whose life he saved was there.

* [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maximilian_Kolbe Saint Maximilian Maria Kolbe]] was a Polish Catholic priest who first was a missionary and thus went WalkingTheEarth for years. During UsefulNotes/WorldWarII, this BadassPreacher was imprisoned in the Auschwitz concentration camp for openly speaking out against the Nazi regime through both a newspaper and a private radio station, and sheltering (among others) 2,000 Jews. He willingly went into the hunger bunker in place of of another prisoner, a Polish woodworker who had a wife and kids; he continued to calmly celebrate Holy Mass in the cell for the other prisoners, and was finally killed by a fatal injection of phenol after all the other prisoners had already died of starvation. He was made a saint on October 10 1982 by Pope John Paul II, and the man whose life he saved was there.

* On July 4, 2021, [[UsefulNotes/NationalHockeyLeague Columbus Blue Jackets]] goalie Matiss Kivlenieks was in a hot tub with several teammates and friends when a fireworks mortar tilted toward them. While exiting the tub, he was hit in the chest by a shell, killing him. At his memorial service several days later, teammate Elvis Merzlikins [[https://sports.yahoo.com/blue-jackets-goalie-kivlenieks-saved-a-teammate-and-his-pregnant-wife-before-his-death-171515473.html revealed]] he and his pregnant wife were less than 30 feet from the mortar, with several other people within range. The only thing that kept the shell from the crowd was Kivlenieks; according to doctors, he saved several lives at the cost of his own. Merzlikins noted that his wife had said about his fallen teammate, "He saved his last puck."

* On [[https://www.cnn.com/2017/03/10/us/beyond-the-call-of-duty-murphy-wisconsin/index.html August 5, 2012]], when a white supremacist opened fire at a Sikh temple in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, the first police officer on the scene was Lt. Brian Murphy. Murphy encountered the shooter in the parking lot, confronted him, and was shot in the face, after which the shooter pursued him and fired another 14 shots into him at close range. This confrontation is thought to have been critical in saving the lives of civilians still in the temple, as it kept the shooter occupied long enough for backup to arrive, preventing him from reentering the temple to continue his rampage[[note]]survivors later noted that the number of shots Murphy took was the exact same as the number of people hiding in a temple pantry who would likely have been the shooter's next targets, leading many to frame the incident as Murphy taking one bullet for each of the civilians who were saved by his actions[[/note]]. Furthermore, after the shooter was down, Murphy, badly injured but still alive and conscious, waved off officers who came to his rescue, telling them to assist the civilian victims inside the temple first. Murphy miraculously survived, though he was forced to retire from the police force due to the extent of his injuries. In 2015, Murphy was awarded the Medal of Valor for his actions during the massacre.

** Previously, Gagarin had tried to save his friend Vladimir Komarov's life by pulling one of these. The Soyuz 1 spacecraft was a poorly designed and completely doomed piece of junk that was only going to be launched due to pressure from the Politburo, and Gagarin knew it. Komarov was going to be the pilot, and Gagarin was his backup. Gagarin tried to use his clout to cancel the launch, and when that was unsuccessful, he tried to take Komarov's place. But the Politburo refused to allow a national hero on a flight they knew would not be two-way, and Komarov went up as planned. Almost every system on the craft began to fail almost immediately, and the mission was aborted. Unfortunately, the ship caught fire during re-entry and both the main parachute and reserve parachute failed to deploy properly, so Komarov hit the Earth without slowing down and was killed on impact.

* On [[https://www.cnn.com/2017/03/10/us/beyond-the-call-of-duty-murphy-wisconsin/index.html August 5, 2012]], when a white supremacist opened fire at a Sikh temple in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, the first police officer on the scene was Lt. Brian Murphy. Murphy encountered the shooter in the parking lot, confronted him, and was shot in the face, after which the shooter pursued him and fired another 14 shots into him at close range. This confrontation is thought to have been critical in saving the lives of civilians still in the temple, as it kept the shooter occupied long enough for backup to arrive, preventing him from reentering the temple to continue his rampage. Furthermore, after the shooter was down, Murphy, badly injured but still alive and conscious, waved off officers who came to his rescue, telling them to assist the civilian victims inside the temple first. Murphy miraculously survived, though he was forced to retire from the police force due to the extent of his injuries. In 2015, Murphy was awarded the Medal of Valor for his actions during the massacre.

* [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maximilian_Kolbe Saint Maximilian Maria Kolbe]] was a Polish Catholic priest who first was a missionary and thus went WalkingTheEarth for years. During UsefulNotes/WorldWarII, this BadassPreacher was imprisoned in the Auschwitz concentration camp for openly speaking out against the Nazi regime through noth a newspaper and a private radio station, and sheltering (among others) 2,000 Jews. He willingly went into the hunger bunker in place of of another prisoner, a Polish woodworker who had a wife and kids; he continued to calmly celebrate Holy Mass in the cell for the other prisoners, and was finally killed by a fatal injection of phenol after all the other prisoners had already died of starvation. He was made a saint on October 10 1982 by Pope John Paul II, and the man whose life he saved was there.

* In 1967, 12-year-old [[https://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/news/the-eternal-flame-6421957 Susie Keidel]] woke up to find her house on fire[[note]]it's now believed the fire was intentionally set by their father to [[SheKnowsTooMuch silence Susie and her sister Lori]], who had seen him kill their mother[[/note]]. Rather than get out of the house as quickly as possible, Susie first went from room to room to wake her three younger siblings and try to get them out as well. When her youngest sibling, 5-year-old Lori, ran back to her room to save a toy (likely not comprehending the extent of the danger she was in), Susie again gave up a chance to escape in order to try and guide Lori out, and both of them ended up being cut off from the exit. With no way out, Susie covered Lori with her own body to shield her from the flames. When rescuers arrived, they found Lori badly burned but still alive under the body of her sister.

* In 1967, 12-year-old [[https://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/news/the-eternal-flame-6421957 Susie Keidel]] and her 5-year-old sister Lori were trapped in a burning house[[note]]it's now believed the fire was intentionally set by their father to [[SheKnowsTooMuch silence Susie and Lori]], who had seen him kill their mother[[/note]]. With no way out, Susie covered Lori with her own body to shield her from the flames. Susie was dead by the time rescuers were able to reach them, but Lori, though badly burned, had survived.

* W. S. Gilbert (the first half of Creator/GilbertAndSullivan) died while rescuing a drowning woman; she survived, but he (being 74 years old) suffered a heart attack from the strain.

** [[http://earthquakestrips.blogspot.com/2008/06/strip-8-last-lesson.html A teacher's last lesson]]. While the authenticity of the story (publicized by the Chinese government) has been put in doubt [[note]]by only one source, The Epoch Times, which has [[Administrivia/RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgmentanti-Chinese views]][[/note]], the comic is a true TearJerker, and the magnitude of the disaster might have created many similar, unsung heroic sacrifices.