Scientists calls for selfie ban after hundreds die in past six years
Between
2011 and 2017, 259 people were accidentally killed in all kinds of
different ways while taking selfies all over the world.
The most common ways that people died while taking selfies was by drowning, being hit by traffic or falling.
And it happens overwhelmingly to men, with nearly three quarters of the victims being male.
Eight people were killed by animals while taking selfies and another 16 were electrocuted in the same period.
The country where most of the deaths happened was India, which accounted for around half of all the selfie-related deaths, closely followed by Russia, the USA and Pakistan.
Dr Agam Bansal at the India Institute of Medical Sciences led the research. He said something needed to be done.
In
one incident last year, 48 people were injured while taking selfies in
front of a burning bakery in India, despite firefighters’ warnings to
move away.The most common ways that people died while taking selfies was by drowning, being hit by traffic or falling.
And it happens overwhelmingly to men, with nearly three quarters of the victims being male.
Eight people were killed by animals while taking selfies and another 16 were electrocuted in the same period.
The country where most of the deaths happened was India, which accounted for around half of all the selfie-related deaths, closely followed by Russia, the USA and Pakistan.
Dr Agam Bansal at the India Institute of Medical Sciences led the research. He said something needed to be done.
Selfies are themselves not harmful, but the human behaviour that accompanies selfies is dangerous, he said.
Individuals need to be educated regarding certain risky behaviours and risky places where selfies should not be taken.
No selfie zone areas should be declared across many tourist areas, (especially) places such as water bodies, mountain peaks, and over tall buildings to decrease the incidence of selfie-related deaths.
And earlier this year, a British tourist and her Australian boyfriend fell 30 metres to their deaths taking a selfie while overlooking a beach in Portugal.
Similarly, Sarita Rammahesh Chouhan took a selfie in front of her family at a popular beauty spot in India just seconds before she fell to her death.
This story originally appeared in The Sun
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