They Were Trying to Take a Selfie, but 4 Ended Up Dead

A horrifying story out of India, where family members trying to take a selfie at a dam ended up slipping into the water, resulting in four deaths. The dead include a 20-year-old newlywed bride and three of her relatives (different outlets report different ages). Her new husband, 25, survived and was able to save his teenage sister, CNN reports. The BBC reports they were holding hands and standing in waist-deep water when a 14-year-old, who was among the victims killed, slipped, pulling the rest of the group under the water.

"They wanted to take a selfie at this spot on the dam and they slipped," says a police official in the southern state of Tamil Nadu, where the Pambar dam is located. "The water level increased while they were there." Of 259 "selfie deaths" between October 2011 and November 2017, a study found that 159 occurred in India. Most selfie victims are under the age of 30, and India has a huge population that age. (More selfie deaths stories.)