9-year-old Illinois boy severely burned after TikTok trend inspired him to microwave NeeDoh toy

The popular squishy toy exploded after Caleb Chabolla put it in the microwave, Loyola Medicine said.

A 9-year-old boy in Illinois was hospitalized with severe burns after a TikTok trend inspired him to put his NeeDoh — a popular sensory toy — in the microwave.

Caleb Chabolla heard about the trend of heating the squishy toy from a friend at school and decided to try it on Jan. 20, Loyola Medicine said in a statement. His mother, Whitney Grubb, heard a “blood-curdling scream” as the gelatinous filling exploded on Caleb’s face and hands, it said.

Grubb took her son, whose eye had swollen shut, to the local emergency room, the statement said. He was transferred to Loyola Medicine’s Burn Center in the Chicago suburb of Maywood for further treatment and spent the night there.