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(UL)Roping A Deer
(Hmmm)Tiger, not lion, kills 1, injurs 2
(DA)Slippery When Wet
(DA)Pulled into the abyss
(Hmm)White Spirit IS Flammable
(?)VA Man Shot to Death While Beating
(DA)Not a Shred of Sense
(DA)Chest Piercing Electrocution
(?)Un-happy slapper
(?)Need for Speed
(?)Great Balls of Fire!
(?)Had big balls.
(?)Rich and Overconfident
(DA)Sneaking Across
Conveyor belt outlasts runner
(?)Let Me Get a Better Look!
(DA)A series of Im-Pined Events
(HM)Home Made IED
(?)Graffitists drown in storm drain
Skier dies after triggering avalanc
Do-I-Yourself Shock Therapry
MANS BEST FRIEND???
Rafts, Rivers, Cement and Bridges
Woman attacked twice by shark
Picnic Lunch
Holy Flaming DOH!
gangsta guns & fireworks don't mix
The high cost of gas
Police: Man Shot Himself In Genital
Auger to Heaven
Drunken driver saves beer
(NO)Disabled man turned himself into hu
Miami of Ohio University...
(?)Jumbolair Airborne BMW
Fire up the BBQ !
(several)
Man stabs self while fleeing
The Faster Method
Kinky Sex, Shocking Death
highway worker nearly earns award
Reverse Mohawk
1 shoot closes slaying case
Grafitti Vandals Drown
When Couch Potatoes Take Root.
two for one
dangerous mixture
Is half a Darwin better then none?
Do Tell
Drowned pair 'spraypainting inside
Man Shot Himself In Genitals During
Explosive Military Intelligence
Men shoot themselves in tattoo atte
Making Deadly Gas at Home
German man goes out with X-mas Tree
vodka+viagra death
Fake hanging becomes all too real
Death by Exploding toilet
Down the drain!
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One sleeper too many on rail tracks
Man Killed in Backyard Explosion
What was he doing up in that crane?
Semi-Conductor
That is one Fowl Shot
diver drowns for golf balls
Metal fence gets revenge
Burning Pants
Police Break in?
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Go Get the Lawnmower
Next Time Buy a Ticket!
dumest showoff driver ever
Couldn't wait to get down and party
Truck-a-Luck
dangerous dog food
They Ain't no Bo and Luke Duke!
The Blue - Handed Pikeman
Un-happy slapper
Driver found unbuckled in crash, bu
Man Shot Himself In Genitals During
He now hates that 'Tom Tom' GPS!!!
A Crocodile Poacher gets scrambled.
Bare hand versus table saw
Drunken Phone Repair
Knife thief stabs self during getaw
Belly dancing through traffic
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Man held by ankles to snap photo
Super Glue Eye Drops
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Cutting up a Napalm Bomb
Escalator Misused
Flash Powder near miss
Log Jamming
Driver requires GPS Train-ing
elevator surfer
Two men dead after swimming in drai
New year buffaloe ride
freek accident
Rest in Peas
Bike VS. Train
Is Arthur still going to heaven?
Slow Learner
Hangings should never be mocked up
Strong finger for firing a pistol
unsuccessful robber shoots self in
The Death of Deadtown
Don't want to fall out of this bed!
Abused car strikes back
Goat Overcomes Man
New years Nose Ring In Brain
Dog Love
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Listen to your parents!
Run over getting the bins in
Man breaks neck in pool accident
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Darwin Awards
2008 Slush Pile

This item was recently submitted by a reader.
Should I include it in the archive?
Vote to tell me what *you* think!

highway worker nearly earns award

2008 Reader Submission
Pending Acceptance

I saw this personally as I was waiting on an on-ramp one morning. A road crew had parked in the wide expanse of grass between eastbound and westbound lanes of Highway 26 about 10 miles east of Portland and was cleaning up some debris there.

One worker picked up with some effort a largish piece of concrete, and with the apparent intent of depositing it on the side of the road, turned and walked across a lane of live rush-hour traffic.

It's one of those things where you don't really want to watch but you just can't help yourself. I fully expected him to be buried under the lead car of a five car pileup, but approaching commuters managed to get their cars stopped without colliding with the man or each other. The lead car came to rest in a huge cloud of tire smoke with his front bumper within a yard of the worker's knees.

The worker grinned foolishly at the driver before turning and heading back to the center, probably embarrassed to realize that he had come within a split second of being abruptly removed from the gene pool.

Since witnessing this, I have been more cautious than strictly necessary when passing road construction crews.

Submitted on 01/14/2008

Submitted by: Ron Christian
Reference: 6/2003

Copyright © 2008 DarwinAwards.com

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Bruce said:
Definitely Keep: Personal Account
This guy really is lucky to be alive. I've seen similar behavior but from people you'd expect to know better. I once encountered a police officer walking fairly slowly across two lanes of a highway. What made it even more amazing was that this was the Taconic Parkway, a very windy and hilly road in upstate New York. I didn't even see the policeman until I came over a rise only about 100 feet in front of him and had to brake fairly hard since he was taking his time walking across the roadway. These sorts of people seem to think they'd win in a confrontation with two thousand pounds of steel, and it's probably just a matter of time before they learn how wrong they are. Thanks, Ron.


Chip said:
Definitely Keep: Personal Account
Maybe he thought the orange vest would protect him. I am curious what you were doing when you witnessed this? (Nosey, aren't I? hahaha) Thanks for teh story, Ron


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