Norfolk Broads Miracle

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understandinguncertainty.org was produced by the Winton programme for the public understanding of risk based in the Statistical Laboratory in the University of Cambridge. The aim was to help improve the way that uncertainty and risk are discussed in society, and show how probability and statistics can be both useful and entertaining.

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At the time of the Queens silver jubilee in 1977 I was in Horning, Norfolk, 250 miles from home. I was spending a few days on the Broads, on my father's boat with a friend of mine. One day we were driving back to the boat after lunch at the Ferry Inn. As we drove this short distance we came upon 3 girls thumbing a lift. We stopped and gave them a lift. They were on holiday with their parents on a boat, moored near ours. We quickly invited them back to our boat for a few drinks on this lovely warm afternoon. When we exchanged details of where we lived. I found that one of the girls lived only quarter of a mile from me and the other two lived in a small village that I had lived in a few years before. We had never met before but had acquaintances incommon I would love to know what are the chances of meeting someone in this way, so far from home who lives so close. My home town has a population of 90,000. We were 250 miles from home, only away for 3 days. All of us were only at Horning for that one day. There is a lot more to this story – I became engaged to one of the girls. We enjoyed a short period of utmost happiness but then my world was shattered by deep enduring tragedy and sadness that remains with me to this day, which should remain private. I would simply like to know what the chances were of the meeting described taking place. I believe the chances must be enormous and that the meeting was intended and orchestrated by a benign paranormal power.
Total votes: 186
Date submitted:Fri, 24 Feb 2012 08:41:42 +0000Coincidence ID:6034