Latest news with #DerbyHighSchool
Yahoo
10-05-2025
- Yahoo
Derby laptop fried in latest TikTok trend
WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) – A new social media trend led to a fried laptop at Derby High School. It's the latest TikTok trend wreaking havoc in schools. The trend teaches kids how to fiddle with their school laptops to make smoke come out. It's been triggering chemical reactions leading to hazardous lithium battery fires. Derby's fire department says the danger goes beyond flammability. Parents are keeping an eye on the latest TikTok trends 'My son and his friend came home, I think it was last week, and said that someone in their class got their conduct card marked,' said Becky Howe, a mom in Winfield. She says the student who got marked was fiddling with a laptop. She says the trend is not surprising. 'They always pass, they always cycle through, and there's always the next one,' Howe said. Curiosity is getting the best of students at Derby High School. 'There's been a social media trend that's been online for about a week or so that demonstrates how you can cause a thermal runaway in a lithium-ion battery inside of a laptop,' said Derby Fire Marshal Jonathan Marr. The trend is causing real concern. 'Once you cause this thermal runaway to occur, you can't stop it, and it'll continue to get worse until it burns itself out,' Marr said. The fire department has to isolate the device. Because it's a chemical reaction, it can reignite, which also means it's more of a hazard. 'The gases that it releases are highly toxic,' Marr said. The school district says the laptops cost almost $400 to replace. 'I think education is always important in that and communication is important… reminding students that there are real consequences to certain actions,' said Katie Carlson 'Parents need to be educated and our children need to be educated that they're actually dangerous,' Howe said. The police chief in Derby says there can be serious legal consequences, too. Even incidents that happen in schools are presented to the DA's office. If the DA decides to pursue the case, not leaving it up to the school to decide appropriate discipline, the chief says the case would go to court, and a student could be charged with arson. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Fast Company
07-05-2025
- Fast Company
‘The school has to be evacuated': Connecticut students are setting their Chromebooks on fire for TikTok
The latest TikTok trend is leading to fire evacuations at schools across Connecticut. As part of the trend, students are filming themselves inserting items such as pencils, paper clips, and push pins into the charging ports of their school Chromebooks to set them on fire. Why? For a laugh and a brief break from schoolwork. One such 'tutorial' gained 1.5 million views on TikTok before being removed, showing a student pushing a lead pencil into the back left corner of the port. 'You might have to wiggle it a bit,' the user explained. Another student tried to film a 'how-to' video last week, managing to cause a laptop fire and triggering an evacuation at Newington High School, as reported by WDBJ7. Since Monday, both Derby High School and Cromwell High School have experienced similar incidents. 'On Thursday, I was alerted by both my director of security and high school principal that we had a Chromebook that was smoking,' Maureen Brummett, superintendent of Newington Public Schools, told NBC Connecticut. She further explained that after an investigation, it was clear that the damage to the laptop was 'done intentionally' rather than being a result of a malfunction, and that students would be held accountable for replacing the school equipment. 'Chromebooks are expensive and they're going up in price, so when a student does intentionally destroy a Chromebook, it's their responsibility to replace it. We have an insurance program, but it's not covering intentional damage,' she added.
Yahoo
01-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Derby students learn from neurologists about strokes
DERBY, Conn. (WTNH) — May is American Stroke Month, a month dedicated to stroke education and awareness. Stroke Awareness Month Derby High School students learned from Yale New Haven Health neurologists about the signs of stroke during an assembly on Wednesday. They were taught to recognize risk factors and signs, as well as knowing the importance of calling 911 to help someone having a stroke. 'We are seeing people younger and younger having strokes, heart attacks, high blood pressure. these are things that are preventable if we start teaching youth how to take better care of their bodies,' Rachel Forman, M.D., a stroke neurologist for Yale New Haven Health, said. 'If somebody having a stroke is around someone who knows the symptoms and gets them to the hospital fast, it can be really incredible for preventing them from having long-term disability or dying,' Samuel Namien, clinical research coordinator at Yale New Haven Health, said. Up to 80% of strokes can be prevented, according to the American Stroke Association. They are the number five cause of death in the U.S. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
