Middle schoolers in Holliston attempted the spicy “One Chip Challenge,” the same challenge a Worcester teen attempted shortly before he died last week.
The Adams Middle School students caused “serious concern,” according to a Facebook post from Superintendent Susan Kustka. But, Kustka added that “thankfully, none of our students became seriously ill.”
“This could have been much more serious,” she wrote.
According to NBC Boston, the group of around 10 seventh graders tried the challenge during their lunch and were “physically distressed in the moments that followed.”
“My understanding is that, just from touching them, some of them had burn marks on their skin,” Kustka told the news station. “People don’t realize how a chip could do so much. This is not a joke, this is a serious situation.”
Any of the students who ate or touched the chip were checked out by school nursing staff before they were picked up by their families, and were told to go to the emergency room, NBC Boston reported.
Last week, 14-year-old Harris Wolobah from Worcester died shortly after partaking in the “One Chip Challenge,” according to his family.
Although an autopsy has not yet been completed, Wolobah’s family said on their GoFundMe that they suspect the challenge was the cause.
Paqui, the company that released the spicy “One Chip Challenge” tortilla chip announced last week, that they were removing the chips from store shelves stating on their website that they’ve “seen an increase in teens and other individuals not heeding these warnings,” referring to the warning on the coffin-shaped packaging.
The challenge involves eating one Carolina Reaper and Naga Viper-flavored chip, and to see how long the challenger can last without needing to drink water or milk to soothe the heat.
Both peppers are considered among the hottest peppers in the world, with Carolina Reapers scaling at 2.2 million Scoville heat units, according to the Los Angeles Times. Naga Viper peppers scale at around 1.4 million Scoville heat units, according to the online pepper shop website PepperHead.
Paqui said on its website that it is offering refunds for anyone who bought a “One Chip Challenge” chip. Call 1-866-528-6848. Read the statement here.
