There’s only one certainty in life that all of humanity shares — death. No one can know for sure when it will inevitably come, but most hope that they’ll slip away peacefully, asleep, when they’re old and grey. If only we could all be so lucky.
Sometimes, death steals our loved ones, our coworkers, our friends, the stranger on the bus in the most disturbing and unthinkable ways. They thought they were going about their day just like any other day. But it only takes one second, one coincidence, or one guy running a stop light while you cross the street, and your entire existence can be taken from you. You weren’t 95 years old surrounded by all of your friends and family. You weren’t prepared. Only taken from the grips of death too soon and under the most heinous circumstances ever.
And the people that witnessed such a grim experience? Those memories will stick with them for the rest of their lives. Maybe they’ll never be able to forget the screams of a child who was killed by a faulty swing set. They’ll never be able to erase the cold and defeated look in a man’s eyes after he was hit by a car while bleeding out in the street. And they’ll never be able to stop replaying the experience in slow motion as someone fell to their death from a mountain side. Those moments shake us to our core and we can only hope that we won’t die in the same terrible ways.
These are 29 of the most disturbing ways people have been killed:
1.
Saw an accident on the interstate. It wasn’t too bad, two cars clipped each other and one guy lost control, spun around and hit the barrier. His car ended up backwards in the left lane. I was right behind him, came to a full stop, and was going to get out and help him when it was safe. He must have been dazed and stepped right out of the car at the worst possible moment. Almost immediately, he was struck head-on by a car going full speed in the middle lane. I didn’t know it was possible for a 200 pound human to be airborne for that long. He was probably dead before he even hit the pavement.
2.
A couple of years ago in my hometown there was a boy who killed himself because his girlfriend broke up with him. He shot himself on an elementary school playground. Not sure if kids found him or not but it was really fucked up. Days later the girlfriend threw herself in front of a train.
3.
My little cousin was 5 when he died. He was attending another 5 year old’s birthday party, and was swinging on their swingset. Which was not anchored into the ground at all, just sitting on top of the ground. So when he swung out too far, it tipped over and the steel pipe that was on top of the swing set crushed his skull.
4.
A kid was swamping for his dad a few winters ago and they needed to put tire chains on their bed truck. The dad told him to get out and put the chains on while he kept hit foot on the brake. The kid got the chains on and was in the process of doing up the inner hooks and the truck slide back and crushed his chest. He died on scene and I never saw the dad again. That’s one of the probably 2 dozen fucked up deaths I have heard of it the oil patch just around my area.
5.
Former EMT here. The worst trauma I worked was a 69 year old man, who blew his face off with a shotgun. He put the barrel under his chin and it ripped his whole face off when he pulled the trigger. He was still alive when we got to him. His face was just a red skull, with some meaty pulp on it and one eye left. He fucking looked at me. I will never forget it. Or the smell.
Laura is a freelance writer for TFLN. She likes to write about what she knows best — dating, sex, and being awkward, but usually in the opposite order. She is the Assistant Editor and videographer for Peach Fuzz, a sex-positive nudie magazine in ATX.
