Seeing people walking around glued to their phones is such a common site in everyday life that nobody even stops to question it anymore.
But keeping your eyes on your phone instead of your surroundings could be more dangerous than you might think, as these stories demonstrate perfectly:
1. Two Men Fall From Cliff While Playing Pokémon Go
Image Source: Cnn.com
Since Pokémon Go’s release in July 2016, there have been numerous safety concerns raised. Parents worry about their kids being lured into unsafe situations in search of Pokémon and there have been several minor injuries reported due to people tripping over or walking into obstacles while looking at the game on their phones.
Two men in California paid a steep price for enjoying the game. They climbed over a fence in an attempt to collect Pokémon and slipped on the rocky edge. One man fell 50 feet and the other almost 90 feet, down to the beach.
The men had to be rescued by firefighters using ropes and harnesses and were treated in hospital for their injuries.
2. Student Taking Selfie Crashes Into Police Car
Texan student, Miranda Rader was taking a selfie while driving for the popular social networking app, Snapchat, when she lost control of the car and crashed into the police car in front of her.
Officers said Rader was trying to put her blouse back on when they approached the car and admitted she’d been taking photos to send to her boyfriend.
She was arrested on suspicion of driving while intoxicated.
3. Tourist Falls To His Death From Balinese Temple While Taking Selfie
Image Source: WIkimedia.org
In the latest incident of “death by selfie”, in January 2017, Javanese tourist Kwan Anto Randy Saputro leaned too far over the barrier at the cliffside temple in order to take a selfie and slipped, falling 100-120 meters to his death.
This is not the first incident of tourists falling from this popular spot for religion and tourism and many of the accidents have been blamed on selfies.
In fact, selfie deaths are on the rise, with hundreds of people now dying every year in the attempt to get that perfect Instagram shot.
4. Woman Dies While Live Streaming to Facebook
A 25-year-old Arkansas woman tragically died while holding her one-year-old son and broadcasting on Facebook Live in December 2016.
The video, which has now been removed from Facebook, includes footage of her singing and chatting before showing signs she wasn’t feeling well such as shaking her head and wiping her face.
She passed out, dropping her phone and the broadcast continued until her friend rushed into the room 30 minutes later. The cause of death has yet to be determined. A GoFundMe page has been set up to raise money to support her two young sons.
5. Man Runs Into Bear While Texting
A California man was too busy looking at his phone to notice the 400-pound black bear that had wandered into his suburban neighborhood.
The encounter was captured by the helicopter camera of California station KTLA, where you can see the man finally noticing the bear before running for his life. The bear was later subdued with tranquilizers and released in a nearby forest.
