The Unkindest Cut
2001 Darwin Award Winner
Confirmed True by Darwin
"Improper use of pruning shears can dull the blades."
Confirmed True by Darwin
(30 May 2001, Hillsboro, Oregon) Ismael, 25, was driving a Toyota truck
when he lost control of the vehicle, which careened into a mailbox,
collided with a utility pole, and flipped onto its side, knocking down
high-voltage power lines in the process. At that point, Ishmael climbed
from the truck and into the path of evolution.
He surveyed the situation with a pair of pruning shears in his hand. Police speculate that he reached up to clip the snaking, arcing cable lying across his truck, and was electrocuted when the shears touched the 7500-volt cable. A medical examination found that the current travelled across his heart and out his left foot. He was found lying motionless, face-down on the power line, with a pair of pruning shears in his hands.
His dazed passenger survived, only to be arrested on an unrelated warrant.
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Submitted by: Douglas Stunkard
Reference: Patrick Harrington of The Oregonian
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