Parents, please warn your kids about not taking part in the ‘Hot Water Challenge’. The challenge has claimed one child’s life already.

In Australia, it is mandatory for all hot water units to be fitted with a tempering valve, which reduces the hot water to 50 degrees Celsius. The reason for the fitting is to prevent scalding from hot water on children and the less vulnerable.

So it’s very concerning that the latest trend for kids to partake in is the “Hot Water Challenge”. The challenge has caused one death and horrific burns to children around the world.

The “Hot Water Challenge” has been inspired by YouTube videos, where boiling hot water is poured on an unsuspecting victim or is being used to dare friends to drink the hot water through a straw.

The challenge has had fatal consequences.

Eight-year-old Ki’ari Pope of Florida died last month after her cousin dared her to drink boiling water through a straw. The challenge took place several months before her death.

Pope burned her mouth and throat and received a tracheotomy. She suffered with respiratory problems and on the night she died, she told her family she couldn’t breathe and fell unconscious shortly after, as reported by Time.

Another boy in North Carolina, 10-year-old Wesley Smith, suffered severe burns after his step-brother attempted the challenge.

The most recent incident happened last Monday when 11-year-old Jamoneisha Merritt of the Bronx received burns to her face while friends poured boiling water on her face while she slept.

Boiling water is dangerous, and it’s important for parents to discuss the fatal consequences of the challenge with their kids. The effects of the burns can be life-long and in a day and age where litigation is at an all-time high, the last thing a parent or child needs is a case against them because they caused an injury or death of another child because of an ill-thought out challenge. And it has horrifying consequences for the victim.

Parents of the victims are urging parents to know about this new challenge trend and talk to their kids about it.

Ki’ari Pope’s aunt, Diane Johnson, told a local CBS affiliate, “Parents, talk to your kids about these challenges.”

“Don’t just give them your phone and let them go by. Watch what they are doing.”

Wesley Smith’s step-father Jimmy Daugherty, told another CBS affiliate, “Watch what your kids are doing on the Internet.”

“When we got to the hospital and I actually seen it, I thought the poor boy had been through a war.”

Parents, please talk to your kids about the fatal consequences of boiling water. It’s not a challenge, but bullying at its worst and the consequences can be fatal.