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Drowning at a lifeguards' party -

A man drowning at a party for lifeguards is pretty ironic on its own, but it can get even more ironic. How about a man drowning at a lifeguards' party thrown to celebrate the fact that the town had had its first drowning-free season? This is exactly what happened to a man called Jerome Moody in New Orleans in 1985.

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A strongman being felled by a nail in the knee -

Polish strongman Zishe Breitbart was known for his performances where he moved extreme weights through sheer strength. Sadly, Breitbart accidentally stabbed himself in the knee with a nail, and that was that. The wound got infected, leading to blood poisoning, and ultimately, death. In the end, his body was just as vulnerable as anyone else's! 

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Escaping the electric chair and the accidentally electrocuting yourself -

Michael Anderson Godwin got his sentence overturned from death penalty to life imprisonment. Though he escaped the electric chair, Godwin ended up accidentally electrocuting himself on a metal toilet. He did so by biting into an electrical cord while trying to repair earphones connected to a TV set.

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Falling out of a window while trying to prove it was unbreakable -

In 1993, lawyer Gary G o y threw himself at a window of Toronto-Dominion Centre to show a group of students that the glass was unbreakable. While the window didn't break, the window frame of the 24th-story office gave in and G o y fell to his death.

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A famous runner dying while jogging -

Jim Fixx was an influential figure in the fitness industry in the late '70s and early '80s America. He even wrote a best-selling book about running. Fixx died of a heart attack while jogging, aged 52.

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Shooting oneself in court -

Clement Vallandigham shot himself in court in 1871, while demonstrating to the jury how the victim could have accidentally shot himself.

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Drinking too much carrot juice -

Overdosing on carrot juice seems like an unlikely cause of death, but this is what happened to health-food enthusiast Basil Brown in 1974. The excess of vitamin A from the estimated 1 gallon (4.5 l) of juice he was drinking a day led to cirrhosis of the liver.

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Creating the Segway and dying while driving it -

British entrepreneur and owner of Segway inc., Jimi Heselden died after driving off a cliff...on a Segway.

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Surviving falling from Niagara Falls but not a 4ft fall -

Stunt performer Bobby Leach successfully went over Niagara Falls in a barrel. However, he was later sent to an early grave by a 4ft (1.2m) fall. Leach slipped on an orange peel and fell, hurting his leg. The leg got infected and was amputated due to gangrene. Further complications led to his death. 

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Dying from shock after reading one's obituary -

Jamaican activist Marcus Garvey had a stroke in 1940, but some newspapers prematurely published his obituary. Garvey ended up having a second stroke after reading his own death notice and actually died. 

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Eating too much during a feast in one's honor -

The French ambassador to Prussia, Tyrconnel, held a feast to honor French physician Julien Offray de La Mettrie, who cured him when he fell ill. The renowned doctor ate too much and ended up dying of gastric complications. 

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Getting hit by a cannonball fired in one's honor -

In 1794, American sea captain John Kendrick was honored for having survived numerous battles, only to be hit by a celebratory cannonball fired during the event. 

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Being hit by a flying model lawnmower -

NFL fan John Bowen died in 1979, after being hit by a flying model lawnmower during the half time show of a New York Jets football game in Shea Stadium. 

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Getting an infection from the teeth of a decapitated enemy -

Viking leader Sigurd Eysteinsson, also known as Sigurd the Mighty, is said to have died after his leg got infected. The infection occurred after he survived a battle and was returning home to celebrate his great victory. The severed head of his enemy, Máel Brigte, was attached to his horse as a trophy, but Brigte's teeth rubbed against his leg causing a wound and a deadly infection. 

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Being beaten by one's own wooden leg -

It is said that English soldier Sir Arthur Aston was beaten to death with his own wooden leg in 1649 by Oliver Cromwell's forces.

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Using an overcoat as a parachute -

In 1911, the French tailor Franz Reichelt designed his own wearable parachute and decided to test it by jumping off the Eifel Tower in Paris, France. 

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Using an overcoat as a parachute -

It goes without saying that the garment didn't work, and Reichelt  jumped to his death. 

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Being launched into space in a chair with rockets -

The 16th-century Chinese official Wang Hu has been dubbed the world's first "astronaut." Hu is said to have been launched by 47 rockets attached to a chair in an attempt to reach outer space. Hopefully, he reached heaven at least. 

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Being crushed by a cow that fell though the roof -

A Brazilian man called Joao Maria de Souza was sleeping peacefully when a cow suddenly fell through the roof of his bedroom. He ended up dying from the injuries in hospital the following day.

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Being injected with soup -

In 2012, a Brazilian woman called Ilda Vitor Maciel died after being injected with soup while in hospital recovering from a stroke. Though her family believed the soup killed her, doctors said that her cause of death was a pulmonary embolism.

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Eating too many cockroaches -

In 2012, a man called Edward Archbold entered, and won, a cockroach-eating contest. A few moments later he collapsed and died of asphyxia. 

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Ingesting mercury pills -

Like many before and after him, the Chinese Emperor Qin Shi Huang was searching for an elixir of eternal youth. It is believed that he died after ingesting mercury pills given to him by his alchemists. 

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Being bitten by a monkey -

Alexander I of Greece died in 1920, not from war battle wounds, but of sepsis, after being bitten by a domestic Barbary macaque.  

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Being crushed by a robot arm -

In 1979, factory worker Robert Williams became the first human to be killed by a robot. He was working at Ford Motor Company Flat Rock Casting Plant, when a factory robot fell on his head. 

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Starving in one's own house -

Homer Collyer was one of two Collyer brothers who was known for compulsive hoarding. Homer was found dead in his home having succumbed to starvation and heart disease.

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Starving in one's own house -

His brother, Langley Collyer, was also found dead in his home. He was presumably trying to get food for his brother when a pile of trash he had been hoarding fell on top of him and asphyxiated him. 

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Being smothered to death with gifts -

The Greek lawmaker Draco is said to have died of suffocation in 620 BCE. His supporters were so impressed with the new legal system he had proposed that they celebrated by cheering and throwing their hats, shirts, and cloaks to him. In the end, he was smothered with praise. 

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Being stabbed by one's own bird during a cockfight -

In 2011, Jose Luis Ochoa was attending an illegal cockfight in California. He died after being stabbed by one of the fighting birds which had a knife tied to its leg. 

Sources: (List25) (Storypick)

See also: The most ridiculous deaths in history

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