Struck-by incidents are a significant cause of workplace injuries and deaths each year. But this has to be a first.
Police in Surrey, British Columbia, say a 25-year-old woman was killed when she was struck in the back of the head and neck with her laptop computer.
Heather Storey was on a business trip with her luggage in the back seat of her car when a tow truck collided with her, according to the CBC.
Investigators say Storey would have survived the accident had it not been for her laptop.
Her laptop was unsecured in the back seat at the time of the accident. Police believe the crash impact threw the laptop out of the back seat, striking Storey. She died of blunt force trauma to the back of her head.
Storey’s brother, Michael Pratt, is warning others to take steps to avoid similar incidents.
“Try not to keep stuff [in your car’s back seat] that can get airborne or hit you, just because your family, and people that care about you, really will miss you when you’re gone,” Pratt said.