The reason is worth noting

According to People, on October 7, 2020, one day after Nick Howell’s grandfather (12 years old) died, the boy sat on the back porch of her house in Miami (USA) with his brother and cousins.

The kids joked and chatted about videos on TikTok, including the “fire challenge”. The video shows a teenager pouring flammable substances on objects and then lighting them on fire. Nick decided to follow suit when he discovered a lighter.

“I poured some rubbing alcohol on the concrete floor, lit it on fire and set the bottle aside. I guess the bottle caught fire and caught on fire and then exploded, my body started burning.” Nick recalls the terrifying moment.

A 12-year-old boy has undergone 50 operations after a horrific accident. Photo: People

All the 12-year-old boy saw at that time was fire, he rushed to the front of the house where the adults were sitting and shouted loudly: “Dad! Mom!”. Nick’s father and two uncles patted the boy while using the garden hose to put out the fire.

Immediately, the boy was taken by ambulance to HCA Florida Kendall Hospital. Nick had to go through nearly 6 months with hospital admissions and discharges and 50 surgeries. Due to nerve damage in his legs, the boy had to relearn how to walk, stand and get dressed.

Realizing the dangerous impact of viral videos on children, 30-year-old Estela Guillen said: “I have to watch them very carefully. The kids are all super adventurous, they’ll try something.

Nick’s accident has made me understand many things, especially in parenting. You think you’re on guard, but that’s clearly not enough. You need to explain to your kids how those online challenges have consequences in real life.”

Meanwhile, Nick also sent a message to other children after the scary experience: “You shouldn’t try to do everything you see on social media. Things won’t work out.”

It is known that this is not the only accident related to mimicking challenges on TikTok. In a safety policy update released in February, TikTok asserted: “We don’t allow users to share content that depicts, promotes, normalizes, or glorifies dangerous practices that could result in serious injury or death.”