A 15-year-old boy from Indianapolis was severely burned after his friend surprised him with the hot water challenge.
Kyland Clark and a friend looked for hot water challenge videos on YouTube…but then his friend took things a little too far. The Hot Water Challenge, which is NOT a fun challenge and you DEFINITELY shouldn’t try, is where a person pours hot (sometimes boiling) water on someone else.
It’s less of a challenge and more of an aggravated assault. Kyland Clark sustained second-degree burns on his face, chest and back. He spent a week in the hospital.
Now he’s in good spirits, joking around on the local news, and expressing his excitement about the WNBA on Twitter. He hopes that soon he can get back on the basketball court himself, but his story is a strong message for others that might get carried away with online challenges.
So, here’s why the hot water challenge is so dangerous.
The water doesn’t have to be anywhere near boiling (that’s 212 degrees Fahrenheit) to cause burns. In fact, water at just 155 degrees can cause severe burns in about 1 second. Ever been in a hot tub and it feels super hot but it’s only at 108 degrees? Imagine that being 50 degrees hotter.
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But despite the obvious dangers, some young people still feel a need to try it, often with devastating outcomes. 8-year-old Ki’ari Pope of Boynton Beach, Florida, died in 2017, months after drinking boiling water through a straw as a dare.
Doctors found that Pope had sustained severe burns to her mouth and throat, and 11-year-old Jamoneisha Merritt suffered second-degree burns after a friend poured boiling water on her at a sleepover.
Though her recovery was successful and she left the hospital looking like her old self.
The challenge garnered widespread attention in 2017 with Pope’s death, but Google Trends shows it’s existed in various forms as far back as 2014. Fortunately, as far as social media challenges go, this one’s unlikely to sustain interest.
1) It is very dangerous, so the majority of young people will likely display some common sense, and 2) videos of the incidents aren’t readily available, since posting them would violate the terms of service of YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, etc.
Kyland didn’t name the friend who poured the water on him, but Emergency Room doctors and commenters on YouTube say that a real friend wouldn’t try to permanently scar you. Doctors say Kyland should make a full recovery but it will take several months for pigment to return to his skin.
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So is this the worst thing you’ve ever heard of? Let us know in the comments or on Twitter at @WhatsTrending.
