When a 9-year-old Fayette County boy attempted to follow a TikTok trend, creating what is known as a Jolly Rancher Grape, he tripped while carrying a bowl of molten candy liquid and suffered severe burns.
“He tripped, and that’s when the boiling hot candy coated his whole hand and his four fingers except his thumb,” his mother, Christina Blackstone, said of her son, Caidan.
The viral trend started a few years ago on the social media platform. It’s recently seen a resurgence. TikTokers can be seen melting Jolly Rancher candies in a bowl by microwaving them. Then, they dip grapes into the liquid using toothpicks before letting the new candy harden.
Since June, the Allegheny Health Network’s West Penn Burn Center in Bloomfield has seen four patients with injuries from the trend, according to Dr. Ariel Aballay, director of the center.