Death By Selfie: Why Selfies Are Turning Deadly

While we huck ourselves off of cliffs, jumps, and cornices, during the ski season a simple selfie doesn’t seem like something that we should worry too much about, but what might surprise you is that selfie deaths are becoming more and more common. This is because people are so focused on getting the perfect photo of themselves that they forget about their surroundings.

Between 2011 and 2017 there were nearly 260 selfie-related deaths and a quarter of those are from reckless acts according to Dr. Agam Bansal, who has analyzed selfie-related deaths over the last 6 years.

One reason why we are seeing an increase in selfie deaths is because of a new trend called “extreme selfies” where people take pictures of themselves in extreme and dangerous environments to get more likes, views, and shares on social media.  This new selfie trend is the cause of more and more selfie-related deaths each year. Most selfie deaths come from drowning, some sort of transportation, or falling mainly because people are now more willing than ever to risk their lives to capture a good selfie.

Some examples of extreme selfies are people taking a picture of themselves while jumping in front of a moving train, while standing on the edge of buildings or large cliffs, and while doing extreme sports.

Snowboarding and skiing can offer some of the best views which makes for a great photo, but make sure to be careful out there and pay attention to your surroundings when taking a photo. We all have seen the snowboarder and skier taking a selfie at the end of a rail in the park, on the landing of a big jump, or on a blind spot on the groomer. Know when and where it’s safe to take a photo and don’t add to the selfie death statistic.