KILLER SELFIES
Hundreds dead spurs plea for no-pic zones
Vanity is killing us.
A man in Maryland narrowly avoided death Sunday after falling into the Potomac River while trying to snap a selfie in front of wild floodwaters. He was thankfully saved by onlookers, but accidents and deaths by selfie are far from rare.
Last month, an Italian teen fell off a shopping center roof to his death in an attempt at securing a risky picture. And an Israeli adolescent also died in September while trying to score a selfie near a waterfall in California’s Yosemite National Park.
They weren’t even counted among the 259 deaths recorded in a recent analysis of selfie fatalities between October 2011 and November 2017. That new study, published in the Journal of Family Medicine and Primary Care, also recom-
mends that “no selfie zones” be designated in treacherous tourist areas like dangerous waters and mountains and above tall buildings.
Not everyone would be on board with “no selfie zones,” particularly Instagram influencers who specialize in adventure travel. New Yorkbased travel blogger Anna Kloots believes that warning signs are “helpful and needed,” but stops short of suggesting banning risky selfie taking.
“To restrict photos altogether isn’t fair,” Kloots told the Daily News. “I do think if danger comes into play, it’s good to have a sign that makes people think twice. But ‘no selfie zone’ is a bit extreme.”
Kloots, 29, travels 300 days a year and has nearly 40,000 Instagram followers. Her account shows her toasting Milan with Prosecco while perched atop the rooftop ledge of a hotel there.
“I have a picture from Albania last summer where I was probably 1,000 feet in the air dangling off of a big stone lookout point very high above the city looking out into the sea,” Kloots said. “Everybody who commented on Instagram wrote things like ‘Get down!’ ”
She asked her tour guide if it was okay to be taking a selfie there, and he responded, “This is Albania, you can do whatever you want!’ I’ve definitely crossed a few signs that read, ‘Don’t cross this. Danger.’ ”
The selfie deaths included in the study stemmed from 137 incidents. The average age of those who lost their lives was 23. And 72.5% of selfie victims were male, while 27.5% were female. That’s because men were more likely to engage in risky behavior to snag selfies.
India was the setting for the highest number of selfie deaths, followed by Russia, the U.S. and Pakistan. Drowning, falls and transport topped the reasons for deaths.
Researchers came up with the numbers by combing through news reports after using search terms like “selfie deaths; selfie accidents; selfie mortality; self photography deaths” and others.
Alarmingly, the number of selfie-induced deaths has generally gone up over the years the research looked at. There were three selfie-related deaths reported in 2011; zero in 2012, two in 2013; 13 in 2014; 50 in 2015; 98 in 2016 and 93 in 2017.
Researchers attribute the bump in selfie fatalities to increased cell phone usage, enhanced selfie features and more widespread use of selfie sticks.
Unsurprisingly, the total number of casualties and accidents was highest for those aged 20 to 29, followed by those 10 to 19. After age 29, the death-by-selfie rates decreased. That’s thanks to people becoming less adventurous as they get older, according to the study.