Sorry SAR--the devil made me do it ;)

From: The Worst-Case Scenario Survival Handbook

1. Jump straight down. If you leap off and away from the building at an angle, your trajectory will make you miss the dumpster. Resist your natural tendency to push off.

2. Tuck your head and bring your legs around. To do this during the fall, execute a three-quarter revolution--basically, a not-quite-full somersault. This is the only method that will allow a proper landing, with your back facing down.

3. Aim for the center of the dumpster or large box of debris.

4. Land flat on your back so that when your body folds, yur feet and hands meet. When your body hits any surface from a significant height, the body folds into a V. This means landing on your stomach can result in a broken back.

Some other tips:

The dumpster may be filled with bricks or other unfriendly materials. It is entirely possible to survive a high fall (five stories or more) into a dumpster, provided it is filled with the right type of trash (cardboard boxes are best) and you land correctly.

-- Anonymous, July 29, 2001

Answers

What an amazing piece of info!

-- Anonymous, July 29, 2001

Be sure that it is a true emergency because, here in Columbus, the homeless often sleep in dumpsters, and you can kill someone if you land on him or her.

-- Anonymous, July 29, 2001

Best to know when the dumpster is scheduled to be emptied.

-- Anonymous, July 29, 2001

Meemur, you're absolutely right! The Hungarian and I were restocking one of her feral feeding stations behind a strip shopping center--around 7:30 a.m. on Saturday. Just as we were walking past the big cardboard dumpster in back of the supermarket, a homeless man arose, climbed out, said a very civilized "Good morning," touched his gimme cap, and walked off.

-- Anonymous, July 29, 2001

At least he was civilized at that moment. Around here, many of the homeless badly need to be on meds of one type or another and since some aren't, they crawl into the dumpster to escape the bugs/JBTs/aliens that are after them. My most recent encounter was when I took a load of non-reuable computer packing materials out to the parking lot dumpster on campus. A guy, who was wearing only briefs, was in there who begged me not to wake up the bees (?) I think that's what he was saying. I set the packing material on the ground and calmly walked back into the building, where I notified campus security from the emergency phone. I had mixed feelings about turning him in (live and let live) but there had been several attempted rapes in the neighborhood nearby.

-- Anonymous, July 30, 2001

How about the poor raccoons? They could be killed, too!

-- Anonymous, July 30, 2001

As a dumpster diver from way back, I can assure you that nowadays, any dumpster containing food has to be secured against critters! The only one I know of that's left open ocasionally is the one behind the Chinese restaurant in the same shopping strip. I think they leave it open in the evening on purpose. It's why the feral kitties look a lot less haggard than other ferals! We know the racoons eat from the kitty food because of the state of the water sometimes, but I think the kitties are smart enough to eat their fill in the daytime--which is why we replenish the bowls early in the morning.

Yep, many homeless people are a few coupons short of a toaster, which is why I was so surprised at this gentleman's courteous demeanor and neat appearance.

-- Anonymous, July 30, 2001