Boy, 11, dies from cardiac arrest after attempting 'chroming' TikTok challenge, family says



An 11-year-old boy in the United Kingdom died from cardiac arrest after attempting the "chroming" TikTok challenge, according to the child's family.

Tommie-Lee Gracie Billington went into cardiac arrest and was found unresponsive at a friend's home in Lancaster around 12 p.m. on March 2, according to the Times of London.

The boy was later pronounced dead at a local hospital.

The boy's grandmother, Tina Burns, explained, "He died instantly after a sleepover at a friend’s house. The boys had tried the TikTok craze 'chroming.' Tommie-Lee went into cardiac arrest immediately and died right there and then. The hospital did everything to try and bring him back, but nothing worked. He was gone."

The distraught grandmother added, "He had a heart of gold just like his dad. Our family is utterly devastated."

The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center defines chroming as: "The inhalation of aerosol paint and other chemical products in an attempt to get high."

"Hydrocarbons are present in many different household products, including aerosol paint, paint thinner, motor fuel, and glue," the hospital warns. "Inhaling them can create a high, which causes many people to use them as a drug of abuse. People may inhale the chemicals in different ways — breathing in the fumes directly or using something like a bag or rag."

Chroming is sometimes known as "huffing."

The Royal Children's Hospital in Melbourne, Australia, cautions that chroming can cause hallucinations, impulsive behavior, depression, slurred speech, lack of coordination, headaches, dizziness, brain dysfunction, seizures, palpitations, shortness of breath, and even sudden death.

Forbes reported, "684,000. That’s how many adolescents between the ages of 12 and 17 huffed or inhaled toxic chemicals in 2015, according to a 2017 report from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. A total of 1.8 million people 12 years and older performed the practice that same year, though inhalant use typically decreases with age."

Following the tragedy, the grieving grandmother said social media companies need to "do more," and added, "We don’t want any other children to follow TikTok or be on social media."

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Teenager dies while attempting social media stunt on Los Angeles bridge



Police said that a teenager died during a social media stunt at an iconic bridge in Los Angeles, California, early morning Saturday.

Los Angeles Police Department Chief Michel Moore said that officers were called to the scene at the Sixth Street Bridge at about 2 a.m.

Moore said that they found a 17-year-old male who had fallen from one of the arches of the bridge near the 6th Street Viaduct. He was transported to a hospital where he was declared dead.

"He slipped and fell to his death," said the chief.

He said the teenager was climbing the arch in order to broadcast on social media when he fell. Moore did not say what social media platform the teenager had intended to use.

The identity of the teenager was not released.

The bridge has been the site of police action over a lot of reckless behavior, including illegal street racing and takeovers. In January, a man was shot and killed on the bridge during an unauthorized filming of a music video.

The $588 million bridge first opened in July 2022 and was designed to become a landmark for the city.

"Tragically we see that location, while it has spawned a great deal of pride in Los Angeles, it has also unfortunately served as a backdrop now for tragedies such as this," Moore said.

He added that police would continue increased patrols to that location in order "to counter such reckless actions."

Law enforcement officials have warned parents to monitor their children's behavior on social media. In some instances, children have died while trying to accomplish social media "challenges" they saw trending on popular platforms.

Here's more about the teen's death:

Teen falls to death from bridge during social media stunt, LAPD says www.youtube.com

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Milwaukee family sues TikTok over death of 9-year-old who attempted the 'Blackout Challenge'



A couple in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, is suing TikTok after their 9-year-old daughter died from performing the TikTok challenge known as "Blackout."

Arriani Arroyo died in February after trying the dangerous social media challenge in which people voluntarily chokes themselves until they pass out.

Matt Berman of the Social Media Victims Loss Center is the attorney for the family and another family from Texas who suffered the same fate.

"It’s the contention of the family that TikTok knew, or should’ve known, that its algorithm was leading children down this horrible path and didn't do anything about it because their goal was to maximize user engagement over above having a safe product," said Berman to WDJT-TV.

"They have specifically designed the algorithms to take advantage of the fact that children's brains aren't fully developed and they're highly susceptible to addictive content," Berman added.

TikTok would not comment due to the ongoing litigation, but representatives from the company referred back to a previous statement about the dangerous challenges.

“This disturbing ‘challenge,’ which people seem to learn about from sources other than TikTok, long predates our platform and has never been a TikTok trend," said a spokesperson for the company. "We remain vigilant in our commitment to user safety and would immediately remove related content if found. Our deepest sympathies go out to the family for their tragic loss.”

The parents issued a warning to other parents whose children may be on social media.

"Her parents are asking all parents to remain vigilant about what your children are being exposed to while using social media apps such as TikTok. There are people who use the internet to spread dangerous challenges and trends that anyone at any age can access," they wrote in part on a GoFundMe account.

"These apps start with harmless trends but there is an undercurrent of malice being spread into these apps," they added. "As parents we do everything that we can to protect our children and shelter them from harm, but we must work together as a community and world to ensure that our future generations are safe and secure."

Here's a news report about the lawsuit:

Milwaukee 9-year-old dies attempting 'blackout' challenge | GMAwww.youtube.com