A TikTok challenge where people jump off the back of high-speed superyachts is being held responsible for a string of tragic deaths in Alabama, USA after going viral on the platform.
TikTok can be the birthplace of all sorts of useful information, like the ultimate hack for free lunch on holiday. Similarly, superyachts can play home to some of the most luxurious and highbrow experiences the ocean can offer, like this Saudi superyacht with a dedicated ‘snow room’. Bring these two worlds together, however, and it appears the results can be incredibly dangerous, sometimes even fatal…
As reported by The Daily Mail, a TikTok boat-jumping challenge that went viral on the social media platform is being held responsible for a series of deaths in Alabama. The challenge — whereby poeple film themselves jumping off the back of fast-travelling superyachts and get subsumed by their dramatic if dangerous wake — has taken a deadly turn, claiming the lives of four people who dared to participate in the high-octane trend.
Though the premise of the challenge sounds simple enough, the act of jumping off a moving boat at high-speed — particularly into its tumultuous wake at the rear end of the vessel — actually poses a number of massive health risks, no matter how fit nor how competent a swimmer the individual may be. The apparently thrilling spectacle has quickly turned into an online nightmare after victims reportedly broke their necks instantly upon impact with the water’s quick-moving surface, leading to instant death.
WATCH: The overzealous TikTok-ers in neck-breaking action.
Alabama emergency service officials are now urging people to think twice before partaking in the dangerous fad. Over the past six months alone, they report having to respond to four emergency calls that led to entirely avoidable drownings. Captain Jim Dennis of the Childersburg Rescue Squad expressed his concern:
“They were doing a TikTok challenge. 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. 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…”
Captain Jim Dennis, Childersburg Rescue Squad
One particularly devastating incident involved a father on board with his family, including his three children. Not only did the father attempt the challenge with fatal consequences, but the entire ordeal was captured on video, preserving a harrowing reminder of the dangers that this ill-conceived challenge poses. Another middle-aged man is among the four noted deaths, after dying in almost identical circumstances.
Sadly, the trend is far from being contained to the bounds of one particularly foolhardy state. Disturbing TikTok footage showcases people hurling themselves into tumultuous white water across the globe, with one video — believed to be recorded on Lake Norman, North Carolina — showing five individuals taking turns to execute daring-if-dangerous flips into the water. Although the footage was originally shared back in 2021, this more recent spate of deaths has led to an influx of warnings against the reckless trend.
Regrettably, but perhaps unsurprisingly, this is far from being the first occasion where the desire to replicate an online trend has resulted in wholly unnecessary loss of life. In recent years, the now infamous Benadryl Challenge has claimed the lives of two teenagers who ingested high doses of antihistamine tablets live on camera. Jacob Stevens, 13, tragically lost his life in April of this year, while Chloe Marie Phillips, 15, met the same fate in August 2020.
While there will inevitably be cries of so-called “social Darwinism” in response to the trend — and while I can fully understand the temptation to do so — the real question here is why people feel the need to put their lives at risk simply for the highly unlikely chance of gaining viral fame that’s destined to disappear just a quickly as it arrived. When did a ‘repost’ become worthy of a watery grave?