25 Incredibly Weird Ways People Have Died

Posted by , Updated on January 5, 2024

Although death isn’t usually a laughing matter, there are some very ironic ways to die out there. In fact, there are even prizes awarded for the stupidest ways to die (Darwin Award). Today, we’re going to be taking a look at some of them. These are the 25 Incredibly Weird Ways People Have Died.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KFy7MUhJe88

25

Denver Lee St. Clair

Wedgie1Source: dailymail.co.uk

In 2013, 58-year-old Denver died after receiving an atomic wedgie from his stepson during a fight. The cause of death was asphyxiation because his underwear had been pulled up and over his head.

24

Garry Hoy

TorontoSource: snopes.com

A Toronto lawyer, Garry fell to his death when he threw himself against a window on the 24th floor of a downtown skyscraper. Ironically, he was trying to demonstrate to visitors that the glass was “unbreakable.”

23

João Maria de Souza

cowSource: bbc.com

In 2013, João was fatally crushed by a cow that fell through the roof of his home in Caratinga, Brazil. The cow had apparently climbed onto the roof from a nearby hillside.

22

Brandon Lee

Bruce and Brandon LeeSource: latimes.com

The son of Bruce Lee, Brandon died in 1993 while filming “The Crow.” He was shot by fellow actor Michael Massee with an improperly loaded prop gun.

21

Karen Wetterhahn

chemistry labSource: nytimes.com

A professor of chemistry at Dartmouth College, Karen died in 1999 of dimethylmercury poisoning 10 months after she got a few drops of the substance on one of her gloves. Her death lead to a massive overhaul of safety regulations.

20

David Grundman

cactusSource: salon.com

David died in 1982 while shooting at cacti with his gun near Lake Pleasant, Arizona. Apparently, after firing several shots at a rather large cactus, its arm fell and crushed him.

19

Jeremy Brenno

golfSource: snopes.com

Jeremy died in 1994 while golfing. Frustrated, he struck a bench with his golf club after which the shaft broke, bounced back, and pierced his heart.

18

Prince Philip of France

black pigSource: history.com

Crown Prince Philip of France died in 1131 while riding his horse through Paris. Bystanders described a black pig darting out from beneath a dung heap which caused Philip’s horse to trip.

17

Robert Williams

robotic armSource: gizmodo.com

Although his death wouldn’t necessarily be weird today, at the time it was. In 1979, Robert became the first person to be killed by a robot. He was working at a Ford Motor Co. plant when the arm of a manufacturing robot struck him in the head.

16

Takuya Nagaya

snakeSource: japandailypress.com

In 2013, Takuya, of Japan, began to slither on the floor claiming that he was a snake. In an even more bizarre twist of events, Takuya died due to bite wounds inflicted by his father. Apparently, Takuya’s dad had repeatedly bitten him in an attempt to “drive out” the snake that was possessing him.

15

Phillip Quinn

lava lampSource: snopes.com

A 24-year-old from Kent, Washington, Philip died when a lava lamp that he was heating on his stove exploded and a shard pierced his heart.

14

Kurt Gödel

GodelSource: nytimes.com

The Austrian-American mathematician died of starvation when his wife was hospitalized. Apparently, he was really paranoid and refused to eat food prepared by anyone else.

13

Mark Gleeson

snoringSource: mirror.co.uk

There are a million different ways to stop snoring. Here is one NOT to try. Mark decided to try going to bed with tampons up his nose. While it might have stopped his snoring, it also stopped his breathing. He suffocated in his sleep.

12

Jimi Heselden

segwaySource: bbc.com

In 2010, Jim Heselden, the owner of Segway Inc died when he drove one of his own products off of a cliff.

11

Great Molasses Flood

Molasses FloodSource: washingtonpost.com

In 1919, a large molasses storage tank burst in the North End neighborhood of Boston. This resulted in a huge wave of molasses rushing through the streets. It killed 21 people and injured a further 150.

10

Basil Brown

carrotsSource: theguardian.com

This 48-year-old health food advocate from Croydon, England died of liver damage when he consumed 10 gallons of carrot juice over a course of 10 days (too much Vitamin A). Even healthy things should be taken in moderation.

9

Fagilyu Mukhametzyanov

coffinSource: telegraph.co.uk

In 2011, Fagilyu suffered a heart attack, was wrongly pronounced dead, and woke up at her own funeral in Kazan, Russia. When she opened the coffin and saw what was happening, she suffered another heart attack and died.

8

Clement Vallandigham

bulletSource: biography.com

In 1871, Ohio lawyer Clement Vallandigham was defending a client on a charge of murder. While showing the court how the victim might have accidentally shot themselves, Clement really did accidentally shoot himself. He died, but he won the case.

7

Hans Steininger

long beardSource: howstuffworks.com

In 1567, Hans Steininger, the mayor of Braunau, Austria died when he tripped over his own beard. It was allegedly 1.4 meters long at the time (4.5 feet) and he normally kept it rolled up.

6

Geoffrey Haywood

ditchSource: dailymail.co,uk

A resident of New South Wales, Geoffrey pretended to be blind in order to receive pity. Things backfired, however, when Geoffrey fell into a ditch and died. Apparently, he failed to see the hazard.

5

Isadora Duncan

scarfSource: bbc.com

In 1927, the famous dancer died when her unnecessarily long scarf got wrapped around the wheel of the car in which she was a passenger. The force of the event broke her neck.

4

Tycho Brahe

bathroomSource: nytimes.com

In 1601, Danish nobleman Tycho Brahe died after attending a banquet in Prague. Apparently, he didn’t want to relieve himself because he thought it would be rude. Instead, he held it in and paid the ultimate price several weeks later. (He developed some kind of bladder or kidney disorder.)

3

Edward Archbold

cockroachSource: bbc.com

In 2012, Edward Archbold of West Palm Beach, Florida died after winning a cockroach eating contest. The official cause of death was accidental choking due to “arthropod body parts.”

2

Gareth Jones

cameraSource: telegraph.co.uk

The British actor died of a heart attack while shooting a live television play in which he was supposed to get a heart attack.

1

Adolf Frederick

foodSource: thelocal.se

On February 12, 1771, the King of Sweden, Adolf Frederick, was really hungry. He allegedly ate a meal consisting of lobster, caviar, sauerkraut, smoked herring, champagne, and 14 servings of his favorite dessert, hetvägg. Shortly thereafter he died of digestion problems. Today, he is remembered by Swedish schoolchildren as the “king who ate himself to death.”



Photos: feature image: shutterstock, 25. wikimedia commons (public domain), 24-23. pixabay (public domain), 22. wikimedia commons (public domain), 21-17. pixabay (public domain), 16. pexels (public domain), 15. Ged Carroll via flickr, CC BY 2.0, 14. wikimedia commons (public domain), 13. shutterstock, 12. Gawrisch, Segwaygreen, CC BY-SA 3.0, 11. wikimedia commons (public domain), 10. pixabay (public domain), 9. Ann Larie Valentine via flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0, 8. pixabay (public domain), 7. Ayleen Gaspar via flickr, CC BY 2.0, 6. Thamizhpparithi Maari, A close-up of Pit, CC BY-SA 3.0, 5. Simon Ebner, Scarf soft, CC BY-SA 3.0, 4. Norbert Nagel, Mörfelden-Walldorf, Germany, Urinals, CC BY-SA 3.0, 3. publicdomainpictures.net (public domain), 2. Jnzl’s photos via flickr, CC BY 2.0, 1. wikimedia commons (public domain)