Burning Charcoal: a Novel and Contagious Method of Suicide in Asia

Suicide by carbon monoxide poisoning used to be uncommon in most Asian cities. In 1998, a Hong Kong woman committed suicide by burning charcoal in her sealed apartment. It made headlines & resulted in charcoal burning being romanticized as an easy, effective way of suicide. By the end of 1998, it was the 3rd most common suicide method. They studied characteristics of the first 100 deaths & found that the people were mostly middle-aged, unmarried, & had no history of substance use or mental disorders. They had strong suicidal intent & 58% were in financial troubles. (3 refs.)