The chance of an individual being killed by meteorite (a meteor that actually reaches the ground) remains surprisingly high. This is because, while major events are rare, a cataclysmic strike could kill millions. Given the destruction that such an event would cause, many organisations are pursuing research into the early warning of such objects and how to deflect one if one is actually discovered to be on its way to Earth.
Nevertheless, while the risk of death due to a meteorite strike is theoretically high, to date, there has only ever been one unconfirmed report of a meteorite causing two deaths in India in 1825. There has only previously been one confirmed injury recorded: to a woman called Ann Hodges in Alabama in 1954.
However, the official zero meteorite-induced fatality score may have to be changed as authorities in India have now confirmed that an unfortunate Indian male bus driver has been killed by a meteorite falling outside an Indian engineering university in the region of Tamil Nadu, Jayalalithaa, in Southern India.
A listing of suspected major meteorite events including injuries is available here:
http://www.icq.eps.harvard.edu/meteorites.html
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