How dangerous is it to sit under a coconut palm?
Injuries due to falling coconuts
A doctor in Papua New Guinea worked out how many hospital visits were caused by coconuts dropping on people.
Ig Nobel 2001
Working at a provincial hospital in Papua New Guinea, Peter Barss reviewed four years of injury admissions and found that 2.5% of them were caused by people being hit by falling coconuts.
He pointed out that palms can be up to 35 metres tall and an unhusked coconut can weigh up to 4 kg, so the impact can be enormous. His very practical advice still stands: don’t park yourself directly under a coconut palm.
Pick your picnic spot carefully.