TikTok ‘Chromebook Challenge’ sends 2 Providence schools students, 1 teacher to local hospitals

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WLNE) — Two students and a teacher were taken to the hospital after a school Chromebook was tampered with and began to smoke, according to a spokesperson for DelSesto Middle School.

On Monday, Providence fire crews responded to DelSesto Middle School for reports of a device that was emitting smoke, according to a Providence city official.

A teacher and two students were taken to local hospitals for evaluation from smoke inhalation.

Principal Ashley Ferranti said the school believes the incident was related to the TikTok “Chromebook Challenge,” in which children insert items into computer ports, causing the system to short circuit.

In response, the principal is asking parents to speak to their children about the “potential hazard that these actions can cause,” and is reminding families that tampering with these devices is a violation of the school’s “Take Home Device Policy.”

The Providence Police Department is investigating the incident.