An alleged TikTok challenge has claimed the lives of four people in just six months, according to US authorities who have issued a stark warning against the trend.
The victims broke their necks and drowned after jumping or flipping off the back of speeding boats, Cpt. Jim Dennis, of Alabama’s Childersburg Rescue Squad announced.
Dennis claimed they’d been participating in what’s been dubbed the “boat jumping” or “boat jump” challenge, which he said had posed a particular problem since the start of the year despite being an issue for some time.
“[Over the] last six months we have had four drownings that were easily avoidable – they were doing a TikTok challenge,” Dennis told local news site WBMA.
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“It’s where you get in a boat going at a high rate of speed, you jump off the side of the boat, don’t dive, you’re jumping off feet first and you just kinda lean into the water.”
He added that the trend had been on first responders’ radars for “two years” but it’s popularity was “sporadic”. However, he stressed, it’s “something that needs to go away and stay away”.
@tndtokFirst responders in Alabama are seeing a spike in drownings related to a TikTok boating challenge, where people jump off of a boat moving at high speeds. #boat #tiktokchallenge #alabama #firstresponders #jumpoffboat
One of the tragic incidents occurred in February when a father reportedly dived into Alabama’s Coosa River as his wife and three children watched helplessly from their boat.
“Unfortunately, she recorded his death,” Dennis said.
The most recent tragedy occurred in May and involved a middle-aged man, according to WBMA.
Indeed, Dennis stressed that the so-called trend was carried out by people of all ages, despite warnings over its dangers.
In a separate interview with ABC7, the rescuer pointed out: “I think people, if they’re being filmed on camera, I think they’re more likely to do something stupid because they want to show off in front of their friends for social media.”
However, he emphasised to anyone tempted to give it a go themselves: “Do not do it. It’s not worth your life.”
One keen boater who condemned the trend explained how it would feel to hit the surface of a lake, river or sea from a fast-moving boat.
Larry King told WBMA: “When you hit the water, it’s almost like hitting concrete at that speed. So, nothing good is going to come from hitting water at that speed.”
Indy100 has contacted TikTok for comment on the alleged challenge.Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.
