People Who Accidentally Stumbled Upon A Dead Body Share Their Stories
Reddit user JohnnyNuclear asked: 'Anyone ever find a dead body unintentionally? What’s the story?'
In August of 1982, author Stephen King's publisher—my fellow Maineiac—released his book Different Seasons. It was a collection of four novellas set mostly outside the horror genre King had become famous for.
The four novellas—subtitled to reflect the four seasons—were:
- Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption: Hope Springs Eternal
- Apt Pupil: Summer of Corruption
- The Body: Fall from Innocence
- The Breathing Method: A Winter's Tale
The first three became the major Hollywood films The Shawshank Redemption, Apt Pupil and Stand By Me respectively. 1986's Stand By Me helped launch or solidify the careers of Wil Wheaton, Jerry O'Connell, Corey Feldman, Kiefer Sutherland and the late River Phoenix in the critically acclaimed coming of age film directed by Rob Reiner.
I read the book when it was published then saw the film four years later. Both are superbly done and I immediately think of them every time the experience of finding a dead body is discussed.
That is the central plot point of the story—four boys on the cusp of adolescence take a pilgrimage to see a dead body discovered in the woods by the train tracks. The journey is life-changing for the fictional characters.
But what is it like in real life?
Reddit user JohnnyNuclear asked:
"Anyone ever find a dead body unintentionally? What’s the story?"
The Scene of the Accident
"I was at a family reunion forever ago. On my 13th birthday Papaw and I wake up early to go fishing on the big lake right next to the campsite."
"We get in my uncle's bass boat and start making our way out to find a spot. We eventually come across a jet ski, with the front end and handle bars all messed up, floating amongst some rocks."
"I will never forget it."
"We both immediately looked at each other and we knew what we were going to find."
"We didn't say a word, just took the boat over to the rocks and sure enough, there's a guy face down in the water in the rocks, obviously dead."
"We called the cops and waited so they could find him easier. They showed up maybe 20 minutes later and pulled him out..."
"Apparently he was drunk and riding his jet ski fast as Hell the night before and smashed into the rocks head on. Poor dude, think he was in his 40's if I remember right."
"We fished all morning and didn't say a thing. Didn't catch anything either."
~ ItsNotAToomah69
"Had a paper route when l was a kid. Part of my route was delivering to a retirement block."
"On this day l stepped out of the lift and as l approached the door to the corridor l saw a trail of blood running underneath it. As l opened the door an old lady was laid head first on the floor with blood pouring from her head, her front door open."
"Tried to help her but she was clearly gone. I chucked the paper over her body and into her flat and ran down to the warden's flat."
"40+ years later, remember it as clear as day. Got offered counselling and a trip to McDonald's from the police."
~ Thick_Letterhead_742
"I did search and rescue for a long time."
"I left because I was tired of the lack of rescues and mostly finding or recovering bodies."
"It was pretty draining."
~ Konstant_kurage
Or Maybe the Scene of the Crime
"A buddy of mine skipped school one day to go fishing."
"He thought his fishing line was caught on debris, but as he reeled in a human hand surfaced."
"He called the cops and they yelled at him for skipping school."
"Well, the hand was connected to a whole body."
"My friend just freaked out when the hand emerged."
~ Jolly_Street
"My youngest sister would babysit for the woman at the end of our block. She was a divorced woman with 2 kids."
"The ex-husband hadn't heard from her for a few days and came by her house to no answer. Came to my house to see if maybe the kids were there with my sister and if she had an answer why he hadn't heard from his ex-wife."
"Sister wasn't home but he and I went to the house. Knocked a few times, and then he just went to open the front door. It was unlocked."
"Her body was in the living room. She was murdered and her children were gone (turned out kidnapped by her then boyfriend)."
"The ex-husband was rightfully shocked and terrified, immediately called the police and reported as much info as he knew. My little sister had to answer some questions about the boyfriend, help give a description vehicle type. Just basic stuff."
"The kids were found unharmed at the boyfriend's mother's house if I remember correctly. I know for sure that they were OK and their dad was able to get them safely."
"I think the boyfriend was caught because of his mom. She called the cops once she saw the story on the news."
~ skeedlz
"Playing hide and seek in the woods . I was running after my cousin and tripped and ate dirt over what I thought was a rock."
"Turned over to get my shoe unstuck and saw it was something white and I pulled my shoe out. I got up and saw it was actually a pelvis (I didn’t know what the bone was named at the time but I knew what a bone was)."
"I screamed and my older cousins came running out from their spots to see me crying and trying to get away from the skeleton sitting in the dirt."
"We went and told my parents. We were pretty deep in the woods so one of us stayed near by it and another one of us waited about 50 feet away but to where we could still see each other."
"We basically made a trail of human bread crumbs to make sure we got back to the body to show the cops."
"I honestly can’t remember why it was there but I know it was only like a year old and partially buried."
~ Space_Junkie02
Sometimes It's Just Natural Causes
"Leaving my house for quick errand briefly noticed an elderly lady parked on side of the road."
"When I returned, her car was still in same location and as I looked closer she appeared unconscious so I stopped but her doors were locked so dialed 911."
"It was determined she had passed away."
~ GaGirl2021
"Had a guy collapse dead of a heart attack in my store."
"He put his full coffee cup down first."
~ Bokuden101
"My friend Vinnywent to a new worksite. The supervisor brought doughnuts and coffee and was introducing everyone to everyone."
"He said this is Joey, Vinny, Jeff, Chad, Morris and then just fell over dead."
"He didn’t even finish introducing everyone."
~ Omegaprimus
"Worked at a movie theatre. It was a weekday morning, so usually pretty slow for us."
"Went in to clean a showing of The Hateful 8, there were only two people in the theatre. One in the very back, and one towards the front."
"Walk in to clean the theatre, see the guy up front. Figure he was sleeping, happens sometimes. Say a couple things to see if he’ll wake up. He does not."
"Get spooked and call my manager. Manager shook him a couple of times, realized something was wrong, called the police."
"Dude was dead."
~ chernygal
Over 53% of Deaths Occur at Home
"When I was 11 I woke up and was looking for my mom. Couldn't find her anywhere. Walked to her side of the bed and she was dead on the floor."
"That was in 92. She was 27. I'm 43 now."
"My hardest birthday was 28. I felt so young still and my life was just picking up, but I just imagined all the stuff she missed."
~ EndoHaze559
"I had a friend who called me around midnight when I was 15. I had a very lax childhood so both me and my mom were awake, but she wasn't exactly happy about my friends calling late at night."
"She chewed me out before I picked up the phone, so I picked up the phone and yelled at him because obviously I was upset that I had just been yelled at."
"He had just found his mom dead. She died of natural causes. She had been sick for a while, I don't recall what exactly was wrong with her."
"He called me after 911 because he didn't know who else to talk to or how to process the situation and the first thing I say is 'why the hell are you calling me this late?!'."
"I will never not feel like the biggest pile of human garbage for that."
~ Tw*t_Pocket
"I woke up around 2 in the morning to get a glass of water. I walked past my fiance, who I thought fell asleep on the couch playing his video game."
"Went to touch him to tell him to come to bed.. well, he was cold to the touch and wasn't breathing.. worst day of my life."
"We had celebrated our 10 year anniversary just the night this all happened. He had a heart attack in his sleep."
~ alienscrub
Regardless of Circumstances, It Makes a Lasting Impression
"In 2017 I used to work as a photographer for one of the biggest shoe stores in Gdansk, Poland. Like one of those with limited, mostly overpriced rare kicks mixed with normal New Balances and Nikes."
"I was responsible for doing packshots (pictures of the product on white background you see on every website) and more lifestyle type of content for social media. The latter was really fun, because I got to take 5 or 6 pairs and go somewhere to shoot with my friend, who would just put them on for pictures."
"Guy was very athletic so if I envisioned him standing on his hands, jumping very high or running super fast for photos, there was no problem with any of that."
"The golden rule was that location had to match the shoe in some way. For example soccer cleats somewhere on the field, basketball shoes on court, running shoes on track etc...."
"It was my role to get creative with it."
"One day I had to do a pair of Timberlands, some Puma running shoes and Vans’ in collaboration with Nintendo."
"I was really looking forward to those Vans because I managed to book a local arcade spot before it opened, so creatively it was dope."
"We shot quick pictures of running shoes on a local track and decided to take Timbs to a nearby forest where we knew there were some old, post-war bunkers."
"It was winter, so grey concrete, some snow and trees seemed like a perfect spot for mustard-colored shoes to pop up."
"And it was in theme since in Poland 6 inch Timbs are more of a winter shoe than work boots."
"So my friend put the shoes on, went to a spot near the entrance to the bunker where I told him to stand and froze..."
"He turned around and said 'Come here and tell me that I’m not seeing what I’m seeing'."
"So there I went thinking he found some money or a phone or something. Nope, there was a body like 2-3 steps inside the entrance. Completely covered with some rugs and cardboard except the creepiest, now engraved in my memory paper white face, with open eyes and open mouth 'looking' right at us."
"He was lying on his side and his head was turned up towards us, which made it even creepier."
"We just stood there for like 20 seconds not moving, not breathing in complete silence. Like we were waiting for him to say something or I don’t know, stand up."
"It was clear the guy was dead but we yelled 'hey' a few times because we couldn’t believe what was happening."
"The fact that this guy was near the entrace and there was this whole, huge, dark hallway with bunker behind it started to create weird scenarios in our heads straight from zombie/Friday the 13th movies."
"We went back to the car and called the police. Patrol car came in like 2 minutes. We told the two cops where to go since we really didn’t want to go there again."
"Turned out it was a homeless guy who got very drunk and went to sleep right after downing a whole bottle of vodka. Froze to death."
"Cops said they knew him, he was about 60, in and out of jail. It took them like 2 hours to take our statements."
"I remember one of them not believing that taking pictures of shoes can actually be a profession so I had to show him the pictures we’d taken already that day."
"We didn’t go to the arcade to take those Vans pictures. We went to a bar instead."
~ michal502
Luckily most of us will probably never have the experience of stumbling across a dead body.
But death is an integral part of life.
Whether we witness it first hand or not, it's something we all need to be prepared to face.
I hate death.
Mainly because I phobia of it.
So you can only imagine how I feel about dead bodies.
I fast forward over autopsy photos pop up on Dateline NBC.
I can't imagine coming across the dead randomly.
How do you recover?
And if it's a violent end that's just too much.
So who has been in this situation?
Redditor Ntoxide wanted to hear from people who have come across the dead, so they asked:
"People of Reddit who have found dead bodies what was your immediate reaction?"
Reactions
Toy Story Goodbye GIFGiphy"As a nurse aide in a nursing home that happened more than I'd like to remember, and tearing up was always my immediate reaction."
TroublesMuse
School Zones
"So when I was about 15 I went to school to take my final exam. I was late due to my bus being in traffic and had to walk through a few streets after getting to my stop, at around midway there this guy crossing the street gets hit by a car going 50 in a school zone (the primary school was to the side of my school). He went over the car and feel on the ground with a crack, car drives away."
"At that point I went to check it out and was already panicking he was still breathing for a while after the crash for about 5 minutes and then he just died. I called 112 and tried to explain the situation as I was hyperventilating. Apparently he had broken his spine and had a lot of internal bleeding, I did not do the exam."
Mobile-Paint-7535
Last Breaths
"Was beside my mum's bed when she died. I just somehow knew it was close so I stayed there and waited. After her last breath, I just sat by her for a bit thinking she was now in peace and past the pain and struggle of a body that was progressively shutting down from old age. Called out for the nurse to come in and confirm she was gone."
"My dad, I found on the floor at our old family home a couple of days too late, almost five years later. Called my wife and then the authorities and sat on the front step feeling guilty, a bit lost and finally annoyed. I was angry and frustrated that he always point blank refused to have one of those medical alert pendants and I hadn't been there over the weekend. I'm still dealing with the remnants of that 15 months later."
djjrrr
Being 9...
"Found my mom's body, I was 9, I thought she was sleeping, I understood when my sisters started crying."
kalarm2
"That's wild. My mom died when I was 9 too, Christmas night from breast cancer. My dad just kinda walked in my room and went 'Hey, let's go downstairs.' I was still at the age where I knew she was dead but I didn't fully understand what was happening until the guys with the hearse showed up to take her body. That's a weird age to accept death at."
darkpinkEFcancer
911
"I didn't realize he was dead and tried to wake the guy up gently. Honestly, I thought he was passed out drunk or high. I was about to check his pulse when two city workers came along told me not to touch him and called 911. The ambulance came, and I went to work. Never actually thought about it again until I saw this post."
tryoracle
Finding the dead is aways a shock to the body.
Farewell
animation goodbye GIFGiphy"My first dead body was a sweet old woman. I got a phone call from her husband at 3am. Apparently she went to the living room to watch TV. I went there. Cold and unresponsive. Hugged the guy and held his hand. Called 911. Called the family. Helped out with whatever I could."
"Second one was very sweet as well. I helped someone transition peacefully and comfortably. There was an order to administer morphine every hour. Around 6am his wife told me he passed. Since he was on hospice I got to interact with them. The family was awesome."
TheRealDannySugar
Crashed
"I was watching a movie with my girlfriend, and suddenly heard a loud crash. I used to be trained in first aid and CPR, so I jumped up and walked outside to try to see if there was anything I could do."
"I wasn't the first on the scene, but I was the first to check out if the driver was ok. I noticed that the glass on the windshield was cracked at about head height, and no seat belt was worn, nor were the airbags deployed."
"Nothing felt right, and there was a feeling of dread that I can only describe as 'empty with a side of heavy.'"
"The man was slouched over to his right, appeared to be about late 50s early 60s, and the primary thing I noticed that confused me was that his veins in his arms looked as though he was still flexing. There was nothing I could do, as there was no pulse, no breathing, and a clear traumatic brain injury that even had he been alive, it wouldn't have looked great long term."
thundervagious
'I love you'
"Called 911. I was hysterical. I loved her very much, and I couldn't believe she was dead. It was like a nightmare I couldn't wake up from. I tried my best to stay calm until the cops and paramedics showed up. It was one of the worst days of my life that I still replay in my mind over and over and over again."
"I flash to the disagreements we had and how many times I could have said 'I love you' more and what I could have done in the last 30 years to have changed everything. That's why saying I Love You is so important, and if something happens, call 911."
"I'm much better now, but that was one of my first reactions."
HumanMycologist5795
High Seas
"Sailor, on one of my first patrol’s we found a dead body in the ocean. We called a man overboard and the nerves of trying to figure out who it might have been was so gut-wrenching and surreal. Turned out it was a Japanese man who had been dead for about a week just floating in the Pacific. Never learned more about it, but still think about it time to time."
lo-squalo
The Body
Comforting Big Hero 6 GIF by SkyGiphy"I told the med tech, and then, because she wasn't on home health or hospice, I washed her body and teeth, brushed her hair, changed her brief, and dressed her in some nice clothes."
Bao-Babe
Saying goodbye to a person and seeing death is never easy.
Do you have any similar experiences? Let us know in the comments below.
It can't be easy finding a dead body.
Reddit user, Xerxesthemerciful, wanted to know what it was like to see someone no longer with us when they asked:
"Have you ever seen a dead body? What's the story?"
Stumbling onto someone who has passed away can be difficult, even if you didn't know the individual personally.
Missing Him During The Nights
"Old security guard guy named John used to rent out our upstairs. Nice guy, kept a lot of soda around and would always keep a few around for us kids"
"John usually worked nights so it was not unusual for us to not cross paths or see him a lot as he slept during the day."
"One day a cop shows up at the house and I answer the door not knowing what I did, turns out he was there because John hadn't come in or contacted the security company he worked for in a week."
"Asked if he could go upstairs and check to see if John was there, so my mom, the cop, and I go up to his room, open the door and all I remember was seeing a blue arm hanging off the bed before I bolted."
"Guess he had died in his sleep. He was old and a widower and was kind of at the point where he just "wanted to see his wife again", so it was sad, but he died naturally."
"Thanks for all the soda, John!" ~ Gday613
Trick. An Awful Trick.
"I was trick or treating as a child. Person didn't answer doorbell so I peeped through his window. He was lying face down on the kitchen floor. Called the police and they busted the door down right in front of me. He was dead for a few days before I found him." ~ sicknisco
An Unfortunate Work Day
"I'm sure a bunch of redditors have been to a viewing/wake, but I watched a coworker die in front of me of a massive coronary. We got back on the job site after lunch and about an hour later he was complaining of a stomachache and we were all giving him sh-t because he'd eaten a bunch of shellfish from a buffet."
"He left to get some antacid or pepto bismol or something and came back, then about 30 minutes later his body locked up and he hit the floor. Another coworker started chest compressions but we found out later he was pretty much dead before he hit the floor. He was barely 50." ~ RearEchelon
Maybe you didn't see the individual up close. It wouldn't matter, because you know what's already happened when you've seen it, even from afar.
No One Cared
"I have seen a few but the one that stuck with me was when i was in the US Air Force in Bosnia. I was in a caravan of black chevy suburbans and i see this body in a river caught on some tree branch. The body was just moving with the current but tugging at the branch with the head underwater. It made me panic and i told everyone in the vehicle "there's a body in the river!" and no one cared." ~ ActionQuinn
Last Act Is To Save Lives
"Watched a man have a heart attack at 45 mph, while driving his truck down a crowded city street, just past some jr high school kids. His last act in this life was to turn across three lanes of traffic, jump an empty sidewalk and plant his truck head on into a concrete barrier. By doing so he probably insured his own death in the accident, but undoubtedly save lives. I was to far away to assist, but I watched while strangers pulled him out and tried CPR, then the medics arrived, took over and got him outta there."
"The damage from the accident, plus the heart attack meant he was dead before they got him outta the truck, so this barely counts."
"Also, had his truck gone the other way, he would have hit me instead of the barrier." ~ PaganMastery
These are the truly harsh ones, the situations which never leave and could never possibly leave. How could they?
Objective Now, Terrifying At The Time
"My dad fell off the roof and broke his neck. By the time I got to the hospital he was clearly braindead. We had to pull the plug. I'd never seen someone die before. It's crazy to see the near instantaneous change in color and texture of the skin when someone's heart stops. It was traumatic at the time but enough time has passed that I can look back on it objectively now." ~ arthur2-shedsjackson
People Explain Activities They've Added To Their Post-Pandemic Bucket List | George Takei’s Oh Myyy
While we've all been cooped up for the better part of two years, many of us have been dreaming up exciting plans for the future. Maybe it's finally time to s...Going Back To Sleep
"Whenever I was 13 i stayed with my grandmother(who lived alone and was only 51)during spring break. I woke up in the middle of the night to her sitting in the living room, where I was sleeping on the couch. She was sitting there awake with her Pekingese. I asked her why she was up. She responded: " I can't sleep and hearing you and Ginger (the dog) sleep relaxes me, go back to sleep."
"I ended up going back to sleep."
"Woke up the next morning and found her passed away on her bedroom floor." ~ SalisburySteakSauce
When They Don't Catch The Pillow
"When I was 11 I lived alone with my dad because him and my mom had gotten a divorce about 6 years back. He had diabetes and was seizure prone. One day I was riding my bike home from school, opened the front door and saw him sitting on the couch with his head back. Being a kid, I didn't think too much of it and I thought he was asleep."
"I picked up a pillow and tossed it to him and said "Hey I'm home" but he didn't say anything or react. That's when I froze. I looked closer and saw blood running down his chin from his mouth. I guess he had a seizure while I was at school, bit off his tongue and drowned in his own blood. Only dead body I've seen outside of a funeral." ~ xKourth
You Don't Forget How They Don't Quite Look The Same
"I rolled my roommate over, he was laying face down on his floor half naked. I knew instantly that he was gone. There was just such an unnatural look to his face."
"It's been 3 years and I won't forget it." ~ Upeeru
"You can always tell when you look at their face. They never look like themselves, whatever it is that made them them is just completely gone. It's kind of like looking at a familiar stranger. Even during open casket events, even as a kid, I always hated hearing people say how they looked at peace or like they were sleeping. They all looked like familiar strangers to me, not the person I knew and loved." ~ ChampChains
Just Because It's Their Job Doesn't Mean It Doesn't Hurt
"More than I can count. EMS and fire service before working as an ED tech, Med school, residency, and a couple years of practice."
"I've seen homicides, suicides, ODs, fire deaths, blunt traumas, penetrating traumas, decompositions and decompensations. Kids and adults. I've intubated and pulled breathing tubes. I've been directly and indirectly responsible for deaths. I've broken that news to families. I take on that risk and responsibility daily."
"Some stay with me. Others do not."
"The one that I remember most vividly was my first year of residency. We had this biker lady in ICU who had no family, visitors, or next of kin. She had a state appointed guardian. We'd run out of things we could do and were beyond the point where she'd have any chance at a meaningful recovery. So it fell to me to get the state guardian to approve withdrawal of care."
"Once all the calls were made and approval was done, I went in with the nurse who helped me shut down the vent. I saw She had a band name tattoo, so I pulled up Spotify and played their top songs, pulled the tube, and held her hand the next 18 minutes til she ran out of steam and stopped breathing. It's been f-cking with me lately because I remember how sad it was that she had nobody she knew nearby when she died. It was the only withdrawal of care I had to do like that… til COVID" ~ squirrleyh**ker
Be safe out there, hug a loved one, and never let the fear of death stop you from accomplishing what you want. After all, you could have less time than you realize.
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Death is always just one breath away. That's a harsh reality none of us like to discuss but it doesn't alter the truth of it. Hopefully when our time comes it's peaceful, and it would be nice if those left behind aren't forever traumatized. I have an obsessive fear of death, therefore I can't even look at dead bodies on SVU. I so admire doctors, nurses and all the people who wrangle with the dead everyday. They have stomachs and nerves of steel. But they are trained to have that temperament. Civilians on the street are often not equipped to just stumble upon the dead like a Michael Myers movie.
Redditor u/jm4b wanted to know who has made a few discoveries they could wish they hadn't by asking.... Anyone ever found a body? What's that like?1-
Found my dad dead (heart attack) one morning as a 7 year old. :( Then when I was 8 I found my grandfather dead (fell, hit his head, into tub full of water) one morning. Honestly it didn't really bother me until I was in my 20s and my (twin) brother was murdered. Then I went through some severe PTSD or anxiety-type symptoms which I later found out was anticipatory grief (my mother is still alive, perfectly healthy, but I was SOOO worried that she would drop dead one day and I'd find her. She had a stroke like the day after getting the news about my brother).
2-
I was at the shooting range once (my first time actually) and an older gentleman shot himself in the stall closest to the door. Everyone had to walk right past his body to evacuate. Gruesome. It looks more disturbing in real life than the movies and everything moved more slowly once I saw it. I was just getting comfortable with my weapon when they called a cease fire and I stood there wondering what had happened. Suddenly it was calls of "everybody get out! Now! Go! Go!"
Pretty terrifying when you can't initially see what's on either side of you because of the lane barriers and you're wondering what the hell happened so bad we're evacuating, then just really sad to realize what happened. There was a kid there about 10 years old with his dad and brother. Hate it.
3-
My dad passed away when I was 16 from a heart attack. No one could find him that morning, and since we were visiting his gf in Cali (we're from Canada) we knew he didn't just go off to run errands or anything, especially since the truck was still there. So we wondered for a while. I was watching tv in the converted garage when I heard her scream because she found him in the downstairs bathroom that wasn't used too much.
I get anxiety now if my mom isn't out of bed before I am, especially since I am not a morning person and she is. So I know how that is. If she's still in bed I get this sudden paranoid feeling that maybe she's dead, even though I know it's unlikely.
4-
I worked at a retirement home for about a year, more specific at the dementia part of the house and we had one man who every day was worried sick for his wife (who has been dead for 8 years). On his birthday both of his daughters showed up and talked and showed slot of pictures, he didn't remember his daughters but he recognized his wife. Tears of joy he watched pictures and and told story's. The morning after when I went to wake him up he was dead. He had a big smile on his face and it was somehow very very beautiful.
5-
One night I was out walking my dog along a country road where a ditch accompanied the road either side, as I was walking my dog started going mad trying to tug away from his lead to this ditch so I wanted to see what it was, it ended up being a corpse so I called the cops they found out that a gang murder happened in a city about 40 miles away and one of the members thought a small village would be a great place to put it.
7-
My grandad was a few months shy of 90 and still lived by himself. He was pretty spry. My mom called him every morning. One day he didn't answer so she called me to go over and check on him. They lived about 40 minutes away and I lived about 5 minutes away. I let myself in and found him in his easy chair holding his phone. He was cold. My dad showed up in about 20 mins and we both cried.
I called the police and they came in, checked it out and did us a favor of calling the funeral home we asked. My dad said he was talking with him about 9pm the night before and said he was sounding groggy, so he said goodnight, and grandad must have rested and passed. He was a great guy.
8-
Went to check on my uncle because he'd not been heard from. I knew before I got the front door open that he was dead by the smell. He was in his recliner. Drank himself to an early grave.
9-
I used to work at this sports bar so it wasn't uncommon for people to leave their car in parking lot for a day or two. After having a couple days off I come into work and this car that was there a day before my weekend started is still parked in the same spot. I tell me boss about it and go check it out, as I get close to the car the smell hits me like a truck. Some guy dead in his car during a heatwave in the middle of summer.
I call the cops and tell my boss. When the police arrived I was asked to make a statement, while I was doing this the paramedics showed up to remove the body. They got this bloated rotten corpse halfway out of the vehicle when it just fell apart , splattering on the pavement. I'll never forget that freaking smell.
10-
Our town's baseball fields for little league is in front of a small fence row of woods with an interstate on the other side. One hot day in July (like 90 F all week) everyone at the game started smelling something awful. A couple of the dads and coaches went to go look and there was a dead guy on the interstate side of the fence row. I guess a trucker broke down and was walking for help and died of heat stroke. I was playing baseball and never actually saw but still a crazy day.
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Even for those who work in careers where co-mingling with the deceased is a regular thing, seeing the dead is never normal. And the more gruesome the ending, the more unforgettable in the worst way. I often tend to skip going up to an open casket at funerals, so I can't imagine stumbling across the dead randomly. I close my eyes when I kill spiders.
Redditor u/ideologistpool wanted to know who has made some grisly discoveries they felt like chatting about by asking....
People who stumbled on a dead body, what's your story?
After the Shower
I arrived at work early one morning and went into the men's locker room.
Lying dead on the floor was a man I didn't recognize at first because his head was so swollen from where it hit the ceramic tile floor (in a pool of blood, as well).
Apparently, though only in his 40s, he had suffered a massive heart attack and collapsed to the floor after just having taken a shower in the adjoining shower room.
Looking at him more, I realized who it was: a long-time employee who was very well liked and admired. When the realization set in, it hit me like a ton of bricks.
The Woodrats
Was working as part of a forensics recovery team many years back, and we were sent to an area that an individual was suspected of dumping a couple bodies, but previous searches by the Sheriff's dept. turned up empty. Our team gets there and begins searching in the ravine (think trees and heavy underbrush), and we don't see any skeletal remains lying about (it had been over a year since they were dumped). That is when I noticed the numerous woodrat nests under some of the trees and brush, like LOTS of woodrat nests. In case you've never seen one, this is what they look like.
So, here is where it is important to know something about rodents...they love to chew on bones, and woodrats are hoarders. You see where this is going. So, I told the lead detective my hunch, and we proceeded to dismantle two of the woodrat nests. Lo and behold, we found human remains interspersed in the mound of twigs. Needless to say, we then tore down all of the dozen or so piles, and found many of the missing bones from the two individuals, all heavily gnawed on by rodents.
Foul Play
I've seen a few dead bodies and witnessed a few deaths, but truly discovered two. First one was when I was about eleven. My dad, my friend, our labrador retriever and I were duck hunting and camping out for the weekend near a large bay of water. We were walking on the beach the second night when we stumbled upon a male's body, fully clad in a winter coat, pants, and one Reebok Pump shoe. It was obvious he had been dead for some time, so it was hard to tell exactly how old.
After we trekked and boated back to the mainland, we called the police from a tiny gas station and they came out and had us take them out to where he was discovered. Turns out he had been missing for over two weeks, which explains why his eyes were pretty much gone and his skin looked... melted. They were later able to determine his identity and that he had disappeared while on a walk with his wife one night, about 10 miles from where he was discovered. Foul play was suspected by many, but as far as I know, no arrests were ever made.
The Battle
I was walking my gf to one of her favorite restaurants for her birthday. We walked through a big memorial park in my city on the way and we passed a man slumped over in a very uncomfortable looking way against a big limestone structure. I asked if he was alright and he didn't respond. I got down on my haunches to look at his face (he was slumped over with his hood up, contorted and face pointing at the ground). His eyes were open slightly and he was clearly dead.
We called 911 and waited until the paramedics arrived. They told us he had likely been dead for hours, suspected overdose.
Super sad. I think about that a lot recently as the number of people sleeping rough or are clearly suffering from addiction in my city has risen significantly since March.
At 13
I was 13, doing my paper round before school. Cut through an alleyway and heard a car engine. I looked round expecting to see a car pulling out into the alleyway but it was just sitting there with the engine idling with the guy at the wheel looking asleep. My legs sort of just kept going for a few seconds until I realized what the hosepipe going from the back of the car in through the window meant.
looking green....
When I was a kid, 5 or 6 maybe, a sort of friend of mine, neighborhood kid, vanished. Just went away. He was gone for about a week or so. It was summer and we lived near a kind of run down secluded beach only folk in our neighborhood used so one day a week or so after kid is gone my mom and I walk down to the beach. I follow a crab running on the beach and around this little hill I come across the kid's body.
No cell phones in those days so my mom grabbed me up, we ran home and she called 911, cops came, it was a whole thing.
I really remember much except thinking he looked... green. It was probably seaweed or something but in my memory he was all that color.
They never did find the guy. There was a local guy they suspected but it was never proven.
After the Storm
It was my first winter in Colorado after moving away from the desert. My apartment's back area is where I took my dog out to pee in the early mornings before work. The apartment building back there sat atop a fairly steep hill that led down to a wooded area. It was pretty steep that if I wasn't paying attention I could easily slip and slide down the hill.
The back apartments that faced this area was occupied by an older dude who was always out on his little porch area enjoying a beer. I've spoken to him a few times just saying hi and whatever trying to be neighborly.
Well, one morning after a huge snow storm hit the area, I bundled up to take my dog out for his morning business. We get to the back area and my dog starts running towards a mound jutting from the bottom of the hill near the woods. I slide down the hill to get my dog and notice the mound had the shape of a foot sticking out of the snow and could make out some colors (it was 5AM-ish, so dark), from clothing. Get closer and a better look and its my old dude neighbor, frozen solid. A broken drinking glass lay next to him so I assume he got a bit tipsy during the snowstorm, went outside on his patio, fell down the hill and just died or something.
Felt more bad than shocked as the dude was hella friendly and always gave my dog some scratches (I think my dog wanted some scratches from the poor guy but wasn't getting them). Called 911 and let them know what I found and just stayed out there with him getting pelted with snow. The police and firefighters were out in minutes. Didn't ask them much about it and since I was freezing my balls off, went back in and carried on with my day.
So Much Blood
Went to my friend's house. We smoked cigs, and we talked about how his roommate Jeff hadn't been around lately. I remember asking my buddy if he farted because the house had a smell. I went to pee in the bathroom and noticed it was much stronger. Jeff's door was next to the bathroom, so I knocked and opened it. Jeff was kneeling on the floor covered in blood. Like he had frozen.
He apparently OD'ed and blood poured out of his nose? I dunno if that's a thing that happens but there was three day old blood everywhere. It was screwed up. We talked to the cops and a detective, like 90 minutes after finding out friend dead from the drugs. Been clean 16 months now though.
The House Manager
I was the House Manager at my University's Student Union and that involved doing a sweep of the building at closing time. Normal night, finding everything empty and in good order until I get to the dining area's rest room. I see a guy's feet under the door in one of the stalls and knock and tell him it's time to go.
He doesn't respond so I give him a few more minutes and will check again on my way back. Sure enough - he's still there. This time I sensed it wasn't right and went and got a custodian. Turns out that the poor guy was having a heart attack and thought he had to go to the bathroom. He passed right there in that toilet stall.
That's my Story
Was about 15. Was with friends in an abandoned building in Redhook in the 80s looking to see if we could find any copper (or anything else) to sell.
Saw what we thought was a pile of old clothes and shoes. It wasn't.
What we had thought from a distance was old shoes sticking out of the pile was the guys skin, which had shriveled up and turned black.
We got the hell out and called 911 from a payphone, then left the area before any cops showed up. We were raised never to talk with cops. Boring, i guess. But thats my story.
The Water
When I was a child my family went holidays to Tunisia. On our last day we went for one final swim in the pool. I remember remarking to my older sister how great the young boy at the bottom of the pool was at holding his breath... she took no notice of me and we continued playing. The pool was packed full of people playing actually... Suddenly a mother comes screaming out of the hotel and straight into the pool. Pulled him out of the water like a sack of rocks. Half hour of CPR but no luck.
It was suspected that in the early morning a group of older youths thought it was funny to get him really drunk, then they pushed him into the pool and walked away laughing. Turns out the boy couldn't swim and drowned. Still have no idea how he went unnoticed at the bottom of the pool for hours.
Injuries
Does seeing a body and not realizing they are dead count?
About 15 years ago a young man (early 20's) was out to a bar, drank, got on his snowmobile to go home in winter in Wisconsin, (all the snowmobile trails lead from bar to bar anyway.) Missed a turn on the trail and hit some trees. got himself up. got his sled righted and back on the trail. then he got back on his sled.
He was sitting on the sled normally with his hands on the handlebars and his head down. We went past about 3 am and thought he was just consulting his map. A friend went by about 10 am and saw him again. then checked on him and found he was dead. then he called the authorities. he had died of internal injuries.
After a Blunt
Walking home from high school one day, main avenue by myself.... saw an old lady sitting motionless in a weird little position against the wall next to a store on the step in the alleyway. Eye remember it as if it was yesterday. It was winter and chilly, she had a pink long sleeve on and a black jacket halfway zipped up. Called out to her once, twice, and she didn't respond. A third time and nothing.
Thought she was sleeping maybe, didn't want to spook her. Touched her left arm lightly and then her face, she was cold like chilly cold. Got instant creeps and went inside to the store and told the store owner. Cops got called. Told the cops what i just told you guys.
Won't ever forget that, it didn't impact me too negatively but just reminded me at that age that life is temporary and can go at any time. Everyone dies eventually and nobody knows when or how but we do know it is inevitable. Thanks for reading if you did read, one love. ✊
My Miracle
Got overtaken by a speeding car on my bike. Heard a loud crash maybe 20 seconds later. The dude didn't make the next bend in the road, hit a tree and died on the spot.
Miraculously, in the minute or so it took me to get there, a neighbor already got there first and stopped me (12 years old at that time) from taking a good look, but I still saw.... enough.
Off to School
Walking to school one day at a new and busy intersection. Lights weren't in yet. Lady pulls out in front of a fast moving SUV while she's in a tiny two door car. I had my first aid exam that day so I went to check on everyone. Only one other person stopped he took the SUV and I took the car. Young boy had a seizure and passed.
I waited for fire and police told then what happened and went on my way to school. Wasn't till I got to school that I realized what happened and broke down.
On Set
Scouting for filming locations. This guy was sitting in a chair on his porch.
By his skin tone, I could see from some distance that he was dead. The neighbors had all ignored him for nearly 24 hours (apparently he sat out there often, but I don't know how anyone could have mistaken that sallow appearance).
In the Swamp
I used to own a road construction company and one time we were looking at a site, looking for utility markings and what not. I had a survey crew and the project manager out there.
There was a bridge over the river (this is in the middle of San Antonio, TX) and one of the guys on the survey team says "hey, boss, look...) there was a body hung up on a rock just under the water is was like the dead faces in the swamp in LoTR. We were pretty high up from the river so we couldn't see it in great detail but it was unmistakable. So, of course, we called the police.
Well, the cops and EMS, etc attracted a crowd of locals and all the emergency services people were down under the bridge looking at the body, discussing how to retrieve it. The crowd on the bridge stared throwing rocks at the body and someone hit it and it kinda, I dunno if it exploded but the water was all cloudy and obscured.... the cops went crazy yelling at people, running back up the hill.
So yeah, that happened.
If you or someone you know is struggling, you can contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255).
To find help outside the United States, the International Association for Suicide Prevention has resources available at https://www.iasp.info/resources/Crisis_Centres/