What more will it take for parents to decide that gender reveal stunts aren’t worth the risks?
On Wednesday, news broke that an ill-fated gender reveal scheme had resulted in the deaths of two individuals on board a single-engine Cessna 206 after the plane plunged into the ocean near the shores of Cancun — where an expectant family had planned to announce their unborn baby’s sex in a banner overhead.
The parents-to-be along with friends and family gawked in horror as the aircraft, streaming the sign “It’s a girl!” in tow, took a nosedive into the Nichupte Lagoon.
The horrific accident is a sobering reminder that such gender reveal stunts have hurt or killed several people in recent years, and have even become a very real threat to the environment. One recent explosive reveal in San Bernardino County, California prompted a forest fire that saw nearly 23,000 acres of wildlife around the El Dorado Ranch Park destroyed.
The injurious trend even prompted the “inventor” of gender reveal parties, Jenna Karvunidis, to condemn such events going forward.
“For the love of God, stop burning things down to tell everyone about your kid’s penis. No one cares but you,” the parenting blogger wrote last year.
“Excuse me for having a cake for my family in 2008,” Karvunidis continued. “Just because I’m the gEnDeR rEvEaL iNVeNtoR doesn’t mean I think people should burn down their communities. STOP.”
In the spirit of safety — and squashing the increasingly problematic trend of declaring your child’s gender before they do — here’s a round-up of some of the most outlandish, idiotic and too-often tragic gender reveal outcomes in recent history:
Plot: An Arizona family packed a giant “bullseye” with explosives
Consequence: Using a Tannerite target manufactured for firearms training, then-father-to-be Dennis Dickey ignited a fire that leveled 45,000 acres of Tuscon’s Green Valley National Forest, resulting in $8 million worth of damage.
Plot: A Tennessee couple used handheld colored smoke cannons
Consequence: The father, of Chapel Hill, risked never having the ability to procreate again after accidentally shooting himself in the crotch.
Plot: An Australian driver used color-infused rubber tires for burnouts
Consequence: The ill-conceived antic caused Samuel Montesalvo’s car to burst into flames. Thankfully, heroic bystanders were able to pull the driver from the burning automobile unscathed. Montesalvo was charged with reckless endangerment with a fine of $1,000 and prohibited from operating a vehicle for six months following the incident.
Plot: A gender-reveal explosion in Iowa launched lethal shrapnel
Consequence: A 56-year-old Knoxville woman, guest of the parents-to-be, was killed when struck with debris launched by the wayward explosion. She was pronounced dead at the scene.
Plot: A plane in Texas was packed with hundreds of gallons of colored water
Consequence: Due to excessive weight, a plane carrying 350 gallons of pink water crashed just after unloading the liquid. Flying at low altitude, the pilot and a passenger on board survived the impact with only minor injuries.
Plot: A Texas family set up a dart board with confetti-filled balloons
Consequence: Veronica Fernandez of Houston ended up with a dart lodged in her ankle when a thrower missed their balloon target. Later at the hospital, Fernandez, the mom-to-be’s sister, got a second shot — for treating tetanus — after ER doctors removed the dart.
Plot: A New York man created a deadly homemade explosive device
Consequence: Christopher Pekny, from Livingston Manor, died while tinkering with an explosive device intended for his own baby’s gender reveal party, and prematurely detonated the bomb. The blast also injured Pekny’s brother, Michael.
Plot: A Michigan man used an antique cannon to fire off a colored cloud
Consequence: An innocent bystander, Evan Silva of Hartland, was struck and killed by shrapnel from the old cannon itself, which had exploded unintentionally — most likely due to too much gun powder used for the intended “bang.”