Survivor: Millennials vs. Gen X will be a historic season in that the entire cast had to be evacuated from the game due to a tropical cyclone.
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But in a Survivor first, both the Millennials and Gen X tribes were forced to leave their respective beaches and be temporarily pulled from the game as a safety precaution for tropical Cyclone Zena which hit in Fiji, where the season was filming, on April 6, Entertainment Weekly reported.
"For 32 seasons of Survivor, we've been very lucky to have escaped some severe storms," Probst told EW.
"This time, the storm caught us. It was only Day 2 and in a matter of hours, a nice afternoon turned into a severe rainstorm that kept growing in intensity by the hour. We were monitoring the weather minute by minute back at base camp."
Survivor's longtime host continued, "When the national Fijian weather service upgraded it to a cyclone, we had to evacuate both tribes from their beaches and get them to safety. We have never had to evacuate tribes in 32 seasons of Survivor."
Probst admitted the experience "was scary" yet "very interesting" to watch considering the two tribes reacted to the crisis differently, validating some of the generational stereotypes.
"The Gen X tribe was responsible and very concerned about their well being," Probst revealed. "The Millennials were less concerned about their safety and more excited that they were making Survivor history."
The only storm to come close to Cyclone Zena's effects on Survivor was a tsunami that hit Samoa in 2009, just a few weeks after production wrapped on Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains. Parts of the island, including Ponderosa -- where castaways live once they're voted out of the game -- were destroyed.
Viewers can watch the drama unfold when Survivor: Millennials vs. Gen X premieres with a special 90-minute episode on Wednesday, September 21 at 8PM ET/PT on CBS.
About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski
