31 December 2004, Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe
The 100-year-old Victoria Falls Bridge links Zimbabwe and Zambia offering a spectacular view of the 80-meter chasm. Continuous spray from the massive waterfall makes the rocks and vegetation along the lip as slippery as a slide at a water park, but far more dangerous. "Notoriously slippery," according to the Mail & Guardian newspaper.

While taking pictures at the falls with his girlfriend on New Year's Eve, Michael John Drake, 50, headmaster at Johannesburg's Summit College and a highly sought-after lecturer at geography conferences, dropped his spectacles over the rim. He would hardly be able to enjoy the view without them, so he decided to retrieve them.

Edging out on the slick rim, he slipped and fell 40 meters to his death. His body had to be recovered by helicopter. Reports fail to mention whether the spectacles had been retrieved.