A selfie is never listed as an official cause of death. But over the past two years, the selfie has been at the center of an increasing number of fatal mishaps across the world as it goes to extreme lengths.
The selfie craze is also needlessly causing a loss of precious lives in Iran as selfie stunts become common by the day, and often more dangerous. With the advent of selfie sticks, a monopod used to take selfie photographs, the activity has only become easier and more alluring by giving the photographer the option to hold the camera and shoot beyond the normal range of the arm.
Since the beginning of the current Iranian year (March 20), four young people lost their lives trying to pose for their friends and followers who would have certainly rewarded them with more likes and views.
In the latest selfie deaths, a young guy and his sister tripped and fell into Chalus River near Marzanabad County in the northern Mazandaran Province on Friday. In spite of immediately dispatching rescue teams, the two could not be saved, ILNA reported Sunday.
Earlier, during the first week of the Persian New Year (Norouz) holidays, a 12-year old girl from West Azarbaijan lost her balance while trying to take a selfie, and plunged right into the waters of Zab River, IRNA reported.
In another similar incident reported by police.ir, a young girl fell to her death on the edges of Kangir Dam in Ilam Province in early May. The police reported that the girl, on vacation along with her family, “was trying to shoot a selfie with the waterfall in the background when she lost control and slipped in.”
Iranian police have so far not made any comment as to whether or not they plan to take any action to address the issue.
Pressing Concern
The unnecessary evil has become a pressing concern across the world. The first time that Google searches for “selfie deaths” surged, was in Jan. 2014, when the death of Lebanon’s Mohammad Chaar became a tragic viral sensation. Moments after Chaar posed for a selfie in Beirut, he was killed by a car bomb.
India has a surprising selfie problem, with more of its citizens dying while snapping than any other country in the world. In 2014, a total of 19 people lost their lives while taking selfies. To combat the problem, Mumbai has created “no-selfie zones.”The upswing in such incidents spurred the Russian government to take action, and in a video and web campaign Russia’s Interior Ministry used road sign style-images to warn that taking “a cool selfie could cost you your life.”
The most recent selfie-related death involved a Washington man who shot himself in the face with a gun while taking a selfie. People may think “that will never happen to me,” but one should certainly think twice about chances of surviving the modern day fad at a time when selfies set the standards for how people will judge you on the expansive World Wide Web.
