Photos Captured Seconds Before Disaster Struck

In an effort to raise awareness for the homeless with a Jet Ski stunt over Niagara Falls, Robert Overackers’s parachute failed to open midair leading to a fatal crash-landing. He was confirmed dead at Greater Niagara General Hospital one hour after this photo was taken.

Paul Walker is one of the biggest names behind the racing-based franchise, Fast and Furious which has run since 2001. Apparently he walked the walk in real life too; he was killed in a Porsche sedan which crashed into a tree while reportedly speeding. While the whole crash story has been all about him, he wasn’t the man on the wheel, neither was he responsible for the crash. This is the last known picture of the Porsche he fatally crashed in hours later.

Pavel Kashin – a famous Russian daredevil with several recorded chilling stunts – tried to do a back flip on the ledge of a 16-story building. Though he completed his back flip, he lost his footing upon landing and plunged helplessly to his death. Pictured is the back flip that led to his death.

Japan Airlines Flight 123 suffered an explosive decompression and crashed 100 kilometers into the flight killing a total of 520 people on board. This photo – eerily showing all oxygen masks deployed – was taken 12 minutes into the flight, 32 minutes prior to the crash.

This photo was taken in a zoo in New Delhi, India, moments before the white tiger dragged this man by the neck into his den, where he eventually killed him. The whole fiasco lasted for about 15 minutes after the man, who tried to climb up the fence to see this rare tiger up close, slipped and fell into the cage. According to the zookeepers and the visitors who witnessed this unfortunate event, all attempts made to distract the tiger were unsuccessful.

The Concorde British-French passenger jet fleet hadn’t experienced a single crash over its 27 years of operation, but when the first one happened, it was so detrimental it led to the superannuation of the legendary supersonic jet type. This is a photo of the Flight 4590 which caught fire shortly after take-off killing all crew members and passengers.

Karl Wallenda was a circus legend and well-known daredevil. He did most of his routines without any safety equipment. Pictured above, he is 121 feet above the ground between two hotels in Puerto Rico. Sadly, this was his last walk, as he fell to his death shortly after this picture was taken. One thing that might shock you is the fact that he was 73 years old when he attempted this walk.

Recognized as one of the greatest rock-cum-pop singers of his time, John Lennon is still a notable figure in the rock scene little under 40 years after his death. In this picture, the English-born is seen signing autographs for a group of fans clueless that this would well be his last autographs to sign. He was killed less than ten minutes later outside his home in New York by Mark David Chapman, the man in the background.

One of the greatest Formula One drivers, Ayrton Senna, is pictured here just before his last race. During an Italian race in 1994, he crashed his car and succumbed to his injuries.

The crew of the ill-fated Space Shuttle Challenger flight of January 28, 1986 thought it was nice to take a photo before launch. Apparently, it was going to be their very last as the space shuttle burst into flames exactly 7 seconds into the flight killing all seven astronauts on board. The nationally televised event went down in the eyes of millions of Americans who were following live from their homes.

This was the last picture taken of Biggie Smalls with Puff Daddy. Moments later, Biggie was gunned down and shot four times by drive-by gunmen in Los Angeles, California. Sadly, he died shortly after the shooting.

Shortly after being diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2014, comedy star Robin Williams was found hanging at his home in Paradise Cay, California. His death took comedy fans all across the world by surprise, and later ire, when it was revealed that the possible motivation for his suicide was a misdiagnosis. His love for taking snaps with fans, however, remains a great memory among his fans. Here then 63-year-old takes a picture with a fan only days before his death.

The was a picture of the German passenger airship named the Hindenburg. This picture was taken in New Jersey just moments before it crashed and caught on fire. In the accident, 36 lives were lost. It was one of the deadliest airship disasters in history.

In this picture is William Dave Sanders – the famous Columbine High School teacher who passively saved hundreds of lives in the April 20, 1999 shooting by Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold in the school – forewarning the oblivious students of the ongoing shooting. He was shot to death minutes later but went down a true hero.

This picture was taken on April 19, 1995 as Timothy McVeigh pulled up with a rental truck filled with explosives. The explosion took place in front of Oklahoma City’s Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building. On that day, 168 people were killed and 680 others were injured. The blast also affected 234 buildings and 86 cars within a 16-block radius

The twin tower terror attack on September 11, 2001 marks one of darkest days in the history of the United States. Although years are quickly drawing on, memories of the day remain well-enfolded in pictures and videos that were taken shortly before, during and after the two planes flew into the landmark towers. This picture was taken seconds before United Airlines Flight 175 crashed into the Southern tower, and is one of a handful others that captured this angle.

William Becker, the mayor of St.Louis between 1941 and 1943, was about to head out on a trip in a World War II glider. Sadly, the glider’s wing broke off and it plunged to the ground, killing the mayor and the remaining 9 people on board.

Nobody knows whether Sandy Irvine and George Mallory made it to the peak of Mount Everest, but if they did, they are the first people to have done it. It was in 1924 when the hike buffs decided to make the determined decision to go up the tallest mountain in the world. Here, they are pictured leaving their base camp.

Officer Green was murdered by a convict who in some way managed to grab a knife and stab him while handcuffed in a jail cell. Here, Green is pictured shortly before his death beside the man who eventually killed him. The man managed to escape but was pursued, rounded and killed hours later after exchanging fire with police officers. No one else was injured

Ramon Gonzalez was a reggaeton artist known also by his stage name Jadiel. This was the last picture he posted on Instagram to show that he was a safe rider who always wore protection for his face and head. Unfortunately, Gonzalez was later involved in an accident where his safety gear wasn’t enough. He died at the age of 27