A viral trend, which encourages people to throw boiling water on one another, has been causing serious injuries among children.
Recently, a Virginia boy was burned so severely in the ‘Hot Water Challenge,’ he had to be taken to the hospital.
“I got burned on my stomach, my left leg, my right leg and my arm, my finger,” said Ashton Taylor.
The 10-year-old spent eight painful days in the hospital due to the ‘Hot Water Challenge.’ Ashton says he had never heard of the viral trend until he ended up on the losing end of it.
“I was scared at that moment,” he said. “I didn’t know what to do.”
Away at a sleepover, Ashton woke up screaming after he says a 9-year-old boy poured boiling water on his chest and legs. He suffered second-degree burns that put him in the hospital.
“I was screaming and they put me in another bed and I tried to calm down but I couldn’t because the pain was just on fire,” Ashton recalled.
His mom remembers when she got to the hospital. She says she could hear her son’s anguished cries in the hallway.
“It’s been a nightmare,” she said, adding, “I mean just blisters everywhere. It’s horrifying.”
Ashton and his mom hope sharing their nightmare will prevent another family from the same pain.
“I just don’t want kids to do it. Their mom to know to teach them a lesson. Show them a video or this so they will know not to do it because it’s really painful,” Ashton said.
His mom says she doesn’t feel any hatred toward the child who hurt her son, but she does think he should have known better.
“I know my child would never intentionally hurt somebody and I feel like, you know, that’s intentional,” she said. “That’s not an accident.”
Doctors say it could take a year for Ashton to recover.
