So yesterday there was a report about a man who was reportedly struck by lightning, no thanks to his selfie stick which supposedly acted as a lightning rod. Now this isn’t the first time we have heard about the “dangers” of selfie sticks but it seems that over in Russia, even the police are getting involved.
The Russian police have recently started handing out brochures to the public in which it warns them about the potential dangers of selfies, and how it could lead to accidents and even death. In fact if the statistics offered by Russian news agency Tass is accurate, it seems that in 2015 alone, there have been more than 10 deaths related to selfies, and about 100 accidents that are attributed to them.
Now it isn’t so much the act of taking a selfie that is dangerous, but rather the distraction that is involved in taking a selfie that could lead to the person being less aware of their surroundings. Imagine taking a selfie at the edge of a cliff or by the roadside, and you think that taking a step back would result in a better shot, only for you to walk off the cliff or into oncoming traffic.
Selfie sticks themselves have also been known to be “dangerous” as they could knock into things or injure passerbys. Recently Disney World issued a park-wide ban on selfie sticks and was even forced to suspend a ride because a guest was found to be using a selfie stick.
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