Ky. communities seeing uptick in social media trend that causes damage, injuries

GEORGETOWN, Ky. (WKYT) - A Georgetown mother and daughter say they’re victims in the latest dangerous social media trend.

It’s a challenge that encourages people to shoot each other with frozen gel beads called Orbeez. It’s known as the “Orbeez challenge.”

The Orbeez and airsoft guns are easy to buy, and it’s gaining attention on TikTok. Georgetown police say people are now freezing the beads, so they hurt even more when you’re hit with them, leaving welts all over people’s bodies. Now, the attacks are happening at random.

“It hurt. My friend who was hit was really hurt. He was near tears because it hurt so bad. Me, not so much because they got me from a further distance. But I was still left with marks on my stomach. It was a very traumatizing experience that should have been taken more seriously,” Olivia Martin said.

Lora Martin’s daughter, Olivia, was a victim of the latest TikTok challenge.

“She’s like ‘momma I’ve been shot. They shot me and my friend. We’ve been shot. It hurts. They’re targeting people and they got me.’ I mean my heart literally dropped out of my chest,” Lora said.

Olivia said for the past few weeks, groups of teens at Scott County High School run through the parking lot trying to shoot each other, and consequently, anyone in between them.

“They’re aiming at people they don’t even know. They’re shooting at cars as they drive by. They’re shooting at people as they walk by. They’re cornering people,” Olivia said.

Georgetown Police Assistant Chief Darin Allgood says they’ve had reports of teens even driving through neighborhoods, shooting at cars and people at random.

“We’ve had car windows shot out, vehicles damaged and other things like that,” Allgood said.

Allgood said if you’re participating in the trend, you could face criminal charges like assault and property damage.

We asked Lexington police if they were getting reports of this challenge. They said while the trend may seem fun, police are discouraging anyone from engaging in trends that cause harm.

Police also warn that you can still face criminal charges for participating in the challenge, especially if there are injuries or property damage.

Copyright 2022 WKYT. All rights reserved.