Fire Challenge: Teens Are Deliberately Setting Their Bodies On Fire For The Sake Of 'Likes'
A popular trend sweeping its way across the social media world could be the most dangerous yet. Videos popping up on LiveLeak and YouTube depict teenagers inexplicably dousing their body with a flammable liquid and setting the liquid ablaze with a lighter. The so-called “Fire Challenge” has already led to multiple injuries for teens looking to get a couple of "likes" on Facebook. Although one YouTube description reads “Fire Challenge Gone Wrong,” really how could such a stunt go right?
A 15-year-old boy from Kentucky was treated for second- and third-degree burns after pouring alcohol on his bare torso and lighting it up. While videos the boy had watched online of people performing the Fire Challenge showed the reckless decision to the light their body on fire, they did not show the end result, something he had to learn on his own. "I don't know,” the boy told WKYT. “I wasn't thinking really."
More and more videos continue to pop up online, leading to more and more teens regretting their decisions. One video posted to LiveLeak shows a teen who severely misjudged the amount of an alcohol-based solution he had covered his body with quickly learns that it was way too much. After covering himself with a generous amount of a flammable liquid, a quick flick of the lighter turns the boy into something out of a Marvel comic book series.
Listen up, impressionable teenagers! Setting your body on fire and putting their life in jeopardy is no way to garner attention on social media. Stick to cute animal videos and pictures of your dinner.