VIDEO: School and fire officials are warning parents of a dangerous TikTok trend where students force items like paper clips and pushpins into Chromebook devices to force an electrical short circuit.
Rocky Hill superintendent Mark Zito says he was informed by three neighboring school districts of the ongoing trend.
Last week, Newington High School had to be evacuated after a laptop fire. The superintendent says they believe that fire was caused by this trend as a student tried to make a “how to” video.
According to the Rocky Hill Fire Chief, Cromwell High School evacuated today for the same issue. “Today we received notice from three neighboring school districts about an ongoing TikTok trend influencing students to force electrical short circuits on Chromebook devices by inserting items such as paper clips, pencil graphite, pushpins, folded metallic gum wrappers, aluminum foil, etc. into the USB port. This action can spark or puncture the lithium battery in the device and poses a serious fire risk,” said Superintendent Zito.
A school in Derby was also forced to evacuate due to the trend.
The superintendent from Cromwell schools says that the exact cause is under investigation, but believes that a few students took part in the trend. Superintendent Zito says staff have been informed of the trend and are on the lookout for anyone inserting foreign devices into a Chromebook, forcibly removing keys from the keyboard, or in any other way tampering with a device.
He has also reached out to local police and fire departments. School officials say that participating in this trend could lead to charges of vandalism and arson.
