Darwin Awards Honourable Mentions

Connecticut Woman Nearly Goes Out With a Bang, But Still Manages to Keep her Cool

Once upon a time, in the land of Bridgeport, Connecticut, a mother of two found herself in a precarious situation during a stormy September night in 2018. As she fumbled through her darkened house searching for candles, she stumbled upon what she thought were some long candles in the basement. Little did she know, they were actually sticks of dynamite!

In a moment of sheer genius, she decided to light them up and hold them in her hand. Who needs all ten fingers anyway, right? It wasn't until after the explosion that she realized her mistake. Thankfully, she survived the blast with only a few missing digits and some facial burns.

Now, one might wonder how she managed to get her hands on dynamite in the first place. As it turns out, buying and selling dynamite is illegal in Connecticut. But hey, rules are meant to be broken, right? Or at least, that's what a California man thought when he decided to store gas in a plastic water bottle.

Yes, you read that right. This man purchased gas, pumped it into a water bottle, and stashed it in his car for a rainy day. And as luck would have it, that rainy day came in the form of an empty gas tank in a Target parking lot. But alas, his plan was foiled by the narrow neck of the water bottle. So, like any rational person would do, he decided to widen it with a lighter.

And that's when things really heated up. Literally. The man went up in flames faster than a barbecue on the 4th of July. Thankfully, some kind witnesses came to his rescue and put out the fire, but not before he suffered some serious burns.

Mexican Man Digs Himself into a Hole, Literally

Love can make us do crazy things, and for one man in Puerto Penasco, Mexico, heartbreak led to an extreme case of tunnel vision. After his girlfriend of 14 years left him due to his violent temper, the man decided to take matters into his own hands and dig a tunnel underneath her house to try to win her back. But the plan was poorly thought out from the start, as he failed to account for basic needs like food, water, and air supply. After a few days of digging, he became trapped under the floorboards, dehydrated and desperate for rescue. When his ex-girlfriend heard strange noises coming from her basement, she discovered him trapped and called the police, who had to help dig him out. In the end, the man's grand gesture of love landed him in jail, but we can't help but wonder if he's still holding out hope for a reconciliation.

Elderly Aussie Man Leads Police on Low-Speed Chase

Sometimes, we just need to get away from it all and take a leisurely drive to clear our heads. But for one 92-year-old man in Melbourne, that drive turned into a police chase on a major highway. After being reported missing earlier that day, the man was spotted driving his mobility scooter on the shoulder of the road, putting himself in danger and causing concern for other drivers. When a concerned citizen tried to intervene, the elderly man told him where to go and kept on driving. Eventually, the police caught up to him and reunited him with his family, but we can't help but imagine how epic this chase would have been with some high-speed music and slow-motion shots.

Yogi's Gravity-Defying Stunt Goes Terribly Wrong

Yoga is supposed to be a peaceful practice, but for one college student in San Pedro, Mexico, it turned into a bone-crushing nightmare. Alexa Terraza was determined to show off her impressive yoga skills to her friends by performing a gravity-defying pose over the balcony of an apartment. But as we all know, gravity always wins, and Terraza plummeted 80 feet to the ground below. Despite breaking over 100 bones, she miraculously survived and became a cautionary tale for yogis everywhere: maybe stick to child's pose next time.

Humans are Friends, Not Food: Especially for Sharks

Let's take a moment to appreciate the bravery of Melissa Brunning, who thought it would be a great idea to feed sharks with her bare hands while sailing in a remote part of Australia. It's not like these sharks were known to be man-eaters, right? Oh wait, they were tawny nurse sharks - not exactly the type you'd invite to a friendly picnic. One of them bit down on Brunning's finger and dragged her straight into the bay. Talk about getting too close to your meal!

Thankfully, Brunning didn't lose her finger, but the infection it contracted could have been a real pain in the fin if they hadn't been able to treat it. Plus, let's not forget that saltwater crocodiles also frequent that area, and they aren't exactly known for their polite table manners. Can you imagine if one of them had decided to join in on the fun? Brunning definitely wouldn't have had a leg to stand on (pun intended).

Man Makes a Molten Mistake: Literally Falls for Lava

If you're ever visiting an active volcano, it's probably best not to try your luck by getting too close to the edge. But hey, some people just can't resist the allure of danger. This was the case for a man who visited the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park in 2019. He ignored all the warning signs, crossed the safety barriers, and got right up close to the running lava. And then... he fell. Like, literally fell off a 300-foot cliff. Ouch.

Now, considering that fresh lava is hot enough to melt metal, you'd think this guy would be toast, right? Wrong! This guy fell onto a tiny ledge inside the mouth of the volcano and miraculously survived. I guess he had some seriously good karma stored up. It took rescuers two and a half hours to pull him up using ropes, and then he was airlifted to the hospital. Who knew that lava could be such a soft landing spot?

Man Forgets What a Wild Animal Is: Learns Lesson the Hard Way

Pieter Nortje clearly skipped the part in school where they teach you not to pet wild animals. He was celebrating his wedding anniversary in South Africa when he decided to show off to his family and friends by petting a lion. Yep, you read that right. A lion. He reached through an electric fence, said "Come here, lovey. Let daddy stroke you..." and proceeded to scratch the lion's mane. What could possibly go wrong?

Well, for starters, the lion might not be feeling so lovey-dovey. And in this case, a second lion took notice and bit Nortje's arm. Thankfully, he managed to pull away and avoid being mauled to death. Hunting experts who watched the video footage say he's lucky the lions were well-fed, or that electric fence wouldn't have been enough to stop them from having a little lion snack. Moral of the story: lions are not your cuddly house cats, and you should probably keep your hands to yourself.

Tourist Takes Selfie to the Next Level

We’ve all heard of extreme sports, but have you ever heard of extreme selfies? Well, get ready because this American tourist takes the cake for the most daring selfie yet.

In a drunken stupor, the 23-year-old decided to climb a historic statue in Turin, Italy to get the perfect shot. The statue was of General Alfonso Ferrero La Marmorain riding a horse, and the tourist thought it would be hilarious to straddle the horse for the photo.

Unfortunately for him, his balancing skills weren't quite up to par, and he fell from the statue onto the street below. The result? Brain surgery. Yep, that’s right, he risked his life for a selfie.

We can only imagine what kind of selfie he would have taken if he had made it to the top. Maybe a selfie with the brain surgeon? We’ll never know.

Romantic Date or Traffic Hazard?

When it comes to first dates, there are a lot of dos and don’ts. But we think it’s safe to say that laying in the middle of the road during a lunar eclipse is definitely a don’t.

One Florida couple in their early 20s decided to recreate a scene from The Notebook by laying in the middle of the road during a lunar eclipse. Unfortunately, their romantic evening didn’t go as planned.

A police officer who was patrolling the park didn’t see them and ran over the couple. Luckily, he was only going 5 MPH, so they survived with non-life threatening injuries.

We’re not sure what’s worse, the fact that they thought laying in the middle of the road was a good idea or the fact that a police officer didn’t see them. Let’s just hope their second date doesn’t involve skydiving.