Girl, 10, dies after attempting viral ‘Blackout Challenge’

A 10-year-old Pennsylvania girl is the latest victim of the dangerous “Blackout Challenge” that’s gone viral on social media.

Nylah Anderson attempted the risky trend — which challenges participants to hold their breath until they pass out — in her Delaware County bedroom on Dec. 12 and was then rushed to Nemours Children’s Hospital but didn’t survive, ABC affiliate WPVI reports. Other outlets have reported the little girl’s name to be Nyla.

A lack of oxygen can result in cardiac arrest and other dangerous outcomes, and the “blackout challenge,” essentially “can result in a strangulation,” Dr. Mandy Dickerman, Associate Division Chief for the Pediatric Critical Care Division at the hospital, told the outlet.

Nylah Anderson was found unconscious in her home on Dec. 12 after allegedly trying the challenge, which dares participants to hold their breath until they pass out from a lack of oxygen.
Nylah Anderson was found unconscious in her home on Dec. 12 after allegedly trying the challenge, which dares participants to hold their breath until they pass out from a lack of oxygen. (GoFundMe)

“She happened to be in her own bedroom of her house, with her family at home,” Elizabeth Wood, a licensed clinical social worker at the hospital, told the outlet. “But no one was in the bedroom with her when this happened, so there was no one there to save her.”

Nylah’s mother, Tawainna Anderson, told the outlet that her little girl “was a butterfly.”

“She was everything. She was a happy child,” said Anderson. “This is a pain that won’t go away. It’s at the top of my throat. I am so hurt.”

Anderson hopes her tragic loss will be a cautionary tale to other parents so they don’t endure the same heartache.

“Make sure you check your kids’ phones,” she told the outlet. “You never know what you might find on their phones.”

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