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Seven die in failed selfie attempt

madoka

madoka

Diamond Member
I think this is a new record if I'm not mistaken.

http://indianexpress.com/article/in...lfie-gone-wrong-seven-drown-in-ganga-2869747/

Clicking a selfie turned out to be fatal for a youth as well as six of his friends, who drowned in the Ganga on Wednesday while trying to save one another, police said.

The incident happened when six youths from Juhi area and one Shivam from Colonelganj area of the district had gone to take a bath in the river after rainfall, SSP Shalabh Mathur said.

Shivam was clicking a selfie while bathing following which he lost his balance and started drowning in the river.

Maqsood tried to save Shivam but he too lost his balance due to the high water level and high current following heavy rainfall, SP (West) Sachindra Patel said.

All the other friends jumped one after another to save the others but drowned in the attempt, the SP said.

A team of divers was deployed to save the youths and their bodies were recovered after two hours, Patel said, adding, all of them were sent to Medical College Hospital where they were declared dead by the doctors.
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I was hoping to laugh at what I assumed was a tragic intersection with pop culture self-indulgence, but it really just seems like a horrible tragedy. 🙁
 
Jodell88 said:
Who the hell bathes in a river after rainfall? That's some stupidity right there.
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Your lack of knowledge on what happens in India is understandable, but still a little surprising given how much I've seen in the news in the last few months.
 
madoka said:
I think this is a new record if I'm not mistaken.
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I was wrong. Something similar happened last year in India as well:

http://www.business-standard.com/article/pti-stories/seven-youths-drown-in-lake-115032300312_1.html

Seven youths, including two brothers, drowned in a lake here while they were on a picnic, police said today.

A group of 10 youths had gone for a picnic near Mangrul lake in Kuhi taluka, about 20 kms from here, yesterday.

Seven of them got onto a local boat in the lake to take their pictures. As they were clicking selfies while standing on one side of the boat, it tilted and they fell into the water and drowned, Nagpur rural police said.

Their other three friends raised an alarm following which a huge crowd gathered near the lake. However, the boys could not be traced due to lack of proper lighting in the area, police said.

After hectic efforts, the bodies were fished out this morning and a postmortem was conducted at Government Medical College Hospital here.
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Out of 28 global selfie related deaths so far in 2016, 22 of them have been Indians. India should ban camera phones until their people are more ready for them.
 
zinfamous said:
I was hoping to laugh at what I assumed was a tragic intersection with pop culture self-indulgence, but it really just seems like a horrible tragedy. 🙁
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Is this better?

In January, two young men blew themselves up in the Ural Mountains while taking a selfie holding a hand grenade with the pin pulled out. The mobile phone with the selfie survived as a record.
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GagHalfrunt said:
It might be a fail for them, but it's a giant win for the gene pool.
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Maybe the first one. But then 6 people with the bravery and selflessness to try and save another at risk to themselves drowned. I'd call that a lose.

Selfish gene wins again.
 
Jaepheth said:
Maybe the first one. But then 6 people with the bravery and selflessness to try and save another at risk to themselves drowned. I'd call that a lose.
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You'd have to be insane to jump into the Ganga.

Selfie.jpg
 
Jaepheth said:
Maybe the first one. But then 6 people with the bravery and selflessness to try and save another at risk to themselves drowned. I'd call that a lose.

Selfish gene wins again.
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There's a fine line between bravery and stupidity. Maybe it's because they have to train this out of us in the steel mill, but here in the states OSHA is very clear about getting somebody with the right training and equipment to help so you don't end up in trouble yourself. This mostly applies to confined spaces where people could pass out if gas builds up that you can't see, but it's really the same concept. After the first two or three people get in trouble in the same part of the water, the rest of them should have understood this wasn't something to fuck with and to get REAL help.
 
This is pretty sad. I'd call the people who risked their lives brave, not stupid. Yeah, they probably should have realized it was dangerous sooner, but they still lept into action to save their friends regardless of the outcome. That's more than most people would do.
 
Anyone who knows anything about saving a drowning person knows that you never, ever attempt a rescue unless you are trained and it's safe for you. These people were as good as dead if they weren't trained in water rescue and simply jumped in after him.
 
madoka said:
I was wrong. Something similar happened last year in India as well:

http://www.business-standard.com/article/pti-stories/seven-youths-drown-in-lake-115032300312_1.html



Out of 28 global selfie related deaths so far in 2016, 22 of them have been Indians. India should ban camera phones until their people are more ready for them.
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Or mandate that all camera phones have built-in floaties.

madoka said:
Is this better?
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lol Well, it's certainly funnier. Especially given that the camera survived.
 
What does losing your balance in the water mean? The article says they lost their balance and drowned (note no mention of an undercurrent or entanglement). I've never lost my balance in the water, but then again, I've never tried to keep my balance in the water. I didn't know it was a requirement to prevent drowning. Google only mentions it as a technique for professional swimmers to prevent yourself from slowing down depending on the stroke you are doing.

I don't think that's what these guys were doing. So in this case, I think losing their balance means losing their footing. When I lose my footing in water, I do this thing called swimming, which keeps my head above the water and prevents me from drowning. If losing their balance led directly to drowning of 22 Indians this year, I don't think the problem is selfies. I think it's a problem with lack of swimming lessons in India.

Also, I'm surprised they fished out the bodies given how many dead bodies are left decomposing in that river.
 
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