# Are 150 people killed each year by falling coconuts? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\ **Created:** [March 29, 2016, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-150-people-killed-each-year-by-falling-coconuts/750533 "2016-03-29T16:22:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![aldiboronti](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9fc348/32.png) [@aldiboronti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aldiboronti)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2016, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-150-people-killed-each-year-by-falling-coconuts/750533/1 "2016-03-29T16:22:30Z")
[Link to column.](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/2405/are-150-people-killed-each-year-by-falling-coconuts) Wikipedia has a pretty detailed article on [Death by coconut](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_by_coconut) (nice shout out to the Dope too.) > [@](#): > > Reports of death by coconut became so widespread that The Straight Dope, a newspaper column devoted to exposing myths, reported that it had become an urban legend. It lists 16 documented instances of death by falling coconut between 1777 and 2013. ---
**Author:** ![glowacks](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/glowacks/32/5548_2.png) [@glowacks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/glowacks)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2016, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-150-people-killed-each-year-by-falling-coconuts/750533/2 "2016-03-31T21:49:15Z")
I find it hilarious that three of the deaths that are mentioned in detail are due from a monkey throwing or dropping the coconut _while the deceased was intending for the monkey to be harvesting them_. ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2016, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-150-people-killed-each-year-by-falling-coconuts/750533/3 "2016-03-31T21:50:50Z")
I thought it was the durians that were so dangerous, no? ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2016, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-150-people-killed-each-year-by-falling-coconuts/750533/4 "2016-03-31T22:34:50Z")
Falling coconuts never seemed to hurt Gilligan. ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2016, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-150-people-killed-each-year-by-falling-coconuts/750533/5 "2016-03-31T23:03:30Z")
> [@HMS\_Irruncible](#): > > I thought it was the durians that were so dangerous, no? Only if you smell them. ---
**Author:** ![Randolph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Randolph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Randolph)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2016, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-150-people-killed-each-year-by-falling-coconuts/750533/6 "2016-03-31T23:49:31Z")
I actually saw it happen. Mr. Wasserman, he’s standing right under that very tree over here on the beach. He’s got his camera out and he’s pointing it at the sunset. It’s a red sunset that evening, and very pretty. Then all at once, down comes a big green nut right smack on to the top of his bald head. Wham! And that, is the very last sunset Mr. Wasserman ever did see. I remember the next thing that happens is the camera falls out of his hands on to the sand. Then his arms drop down to his sides and hang there. Then he starts swaying. He sways backwards and forwards several times ever so gentle, and I’m standing there watching him, and I says to myself the poor man’s gone all dizzy and maybe he’s going to faint any moment. Then very very slowly he keels right over and down he goes. Dead as a doornail. It never pays to be standing under a coconut palm when there’s a breeze blowing.