Arizona is The Only State Where Someone Was Killed By A Cactus

Living in the desert around Arizona or indeed in the Southwest, you're expected to find tons of dirt, rock & cactuses (or cacti if you want to call it). Normally you wouldn't want to miss these prickly plants; the spines (those pointy things) can cause some serious harm if they get lodged inside you. And in one Arizona city, there was one case of a man dying from a saguaro cactus.

A Sag-whato?

If you've been to Arizona, you're very familiar of a saguaro cactus; they're the largest cactus in the United States & they can reach up to 40 feet tall (the tallest up to 78 feet tall). You can find them anywhere between Arizona & California.

So when did "death by cactus" occur in Arizona?

In February 1982, a 27 year old man named David Grundman, went out to Mount Pleasant, Arizona with a buddy of his, James Sucochi, to go shooting. They two 2 rifles & a shotgun with the purpose of shooting the cacti in the area. They approached a 26 ft saguaro; David pulled out his shotgun & started firing at the plant. Unfortunately he was standing too close, as a giant arm (about 4 ft big) broke off and fell on him; killing him instantly.

The story has become a story shared all over the internet; some people even making a song talk about the event.

There almost was a 2nd "death by cactus"

Believe it or not, over 40 years later there was ANOTHER man who was attacked by a cactus; William Mason of Yuma, Arizona in July of 2012. William was unfortunate enough to have a 16 ft tall cactus fall on him, having over 100 needles stabbing him. After many physical therapy sessions, William was able to recover from this freak accident.

Moral of the story: don't harm the cactus.

It is HIGHLY illegal to dig up, vandalize (and yes shoot) a cactus in the US. So next time you're out in the desert around these green plants, treat them with respect. You never know when they might fight back.

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