Killer Sandcastles More Dangerous Than Sharks

I love unusual statistics and a recent story in The Telegraph caught my eye.

The personal insurance industry is awash with statistics and they are used as a main element in the equation to determine the cost of a policy premium. The insurance companies know for example statistically how many people receive novelty slippers as a Christmas present and not too surprisingly manage to fall down the stairs in them that very day. I doubt however that the following statistic is factored into the calculation for personal accident and life cover.

Research by a leading doctor (published here) shows that Americans are more likely to die from sandcastle holes in the beach than being killed in a shark attack. Dr Bradley Maron (Harvard Medical School) has undertaken research that shows that since 1990 in the US 16 people have died as a result of falling into holes dug in the sand but only 12 people have died from a shark attack. Dr Maron says

Typically, victims became completely submerged in the sand when the walls of the hole unexpectedly collapsed, leaving virtually no evidence of the hole of the location of the victim.

Not a nice way to go!