Every time I think the TikTok universe has run out of ideas for crazy challenges, an enterprising young genius comes up with another one. Let’s see, just recently we had the “Back-Cracking Challenge,” the “Pee Your Pants Challenge,” and the “Dry Scoop Challenge,” which gave a 20-year-old woman a heart attack and put her in a coma.
Look, the people who participate in these challenges aren’t exactly Rhodes Scholars, okay? And TikTok’s latest foray into getting kids into ridiculous, and often dangerous, situations is no different. The new trend is called the TikTok “Baby Swing Challenge,” and the people who participate are downright selfish.
Why do I call them selfish? Because these kids squeeze themselves into a baby swing, they naturally get stuck, and the fire department has to be called to surgically remove them from captivity. Here’s an example.
Fired Up Officials
In the United Kingdom, the number of emergency calls has doubled over the last year due to the “Baby Swing Challenge,” and fire chiefs are rightfully ticked off.
“This craze is definitely to blame for the increase [in emergency calls],” one firefighter told The Sun. “We have better things to be doing than cutting teenagers out of swings who think it’s a laugh. While we are dealing with them, a house fire could be killing people.”
The Sun says there were at least 777 emergency calls in the UK last year for people who got stuck in baby swings. That’s 777 emergency calls! To put things into perspective and to show you how much influence TikTok can have, there were 438 swing rescues in 2019. That’s a 77.4% increase. Congratulations on an epic accomplishment, teens!
“This is shocking and ridiculous at the same time,” MP Nigel Mills told The Sun. “People who do this should be fined. [The swings] are for babies to play in, not older people. I’d be tempted to leave [the teenagers] there, although I suppose you can’t really.”
According to The Sun, this latest TikTok experiment in stupidity isn’t going away anytime soon. They say the London Fire Brigade has already rescued at least 21 thick-headed teens from baby swings this year. Can you imagine being stuck in one of those swings while a firefighter cuts you out? How unbelievably embarrassing would that be?
And what about the swings that have to be dismantled? Will no one speak for them?
Assistant Commissioner for Fire Stations Jane Philpott said that before people take part in this challenge, they should not only think of the injuries they are likely to incur, but also think of “the damage to the swings which have to be cut apart.” She also reminded TikTok fans that by forcing their body into a swing meant for a 2-year-old, they could prevent resources from being used for a “genuine emergency.”
“It might be a fun story for your friends,” Philpott said of the “Baby Swing Challenge,” “but wasting the time of emergency services is serious.”