ATLANTA (NEWSWATCH33) – Alyssa Sutton, 17 of Atlanta, hands became permanently deformed after doing the new viral “Rich Gang Challenge”. According to medical officials, her hands will be amputated to prevent further damage.
Alyssa Sutton is like most teens who keeps up with what’s trendy on the internet. She’s known on Vine for participating in several challenges such as the Don’t Judge Challenge, Cinnamon Challenge, and the Ice Bucket Challenge. However, Sutton did not realize that the next challenge she would take on would be her last.
According to reports, Sutton participated in the new “Rich Gang Challenge” which involves throwing up specific gang signs in time sequence with the beat of a song. You’re supposed to create certain signs with your fingers and hands in a specific order that (without many people knowing) insult another gang.
Many teens and some adults have posted “dubsmashes” over the song by Rich Gang ‘I’mma Ride’ where they throw up various gang signs. (A dubsmash is when you mime a voiceover in a unique way) and upload them online.
Sutton did the challenge for 7 hours straight failing to realize that it would cause permanent damage to her hands. After Sutton completed the challenge, she went into the kitchen to make a sandwich.
Reportedly, Sutton went to grab some bread when both of her hands “locked up” on her. Sutton screamed for help and her mother, Sandra Sutton, rushed to her aid.
“I found my daughter on the floor in the kitchen crying. When I asked her what was wrong, she showed me her hands. I almost vomited after seeing how her hands looked. They looked like someone ran over them with a car. I tried to ask her what happened to her hands but she just kept crying. I called 911 and waited for them to arrive,” said Ms. Sutton.
When paramedics arrived at Sutton’s residence, they immediately rushed her to the emergency room. Doctors asked Ms. Sutton what happened to her daughter but she was unable to explain why her hands were suddenly deformed. Doctors sedated Alyssa and waited about 30 minutes to question her on the events that lead up to situation.
“I was doing the Rich Gang Challenge. A few people I knew were doing it and they told me to do it. I figured I could do it better than them so I did the challenge for a few hours. I didn’t hear about anyone getting hurt from it so I thought it was safe,” said Alyssa.
Doctors took x-rays of her hands to determine the extent of the damage. After reviewing the x-rays, doctors determined that Alyssa had caused severe, irreversible damage to both of her hands. Doctors explained to Ms. Sutton that due to the extent of the damage, they would have to amputate both of her daughter’s hands to prevent further damage.
“After examining Alyssa’s hands, we found severe nerve, joint, and blood vessel damage. If we allow her to stay in her current state, she could suffer from a massive blood clot which could result in death. It’s imperative that we operate on Alyssa’s hands and remove as much as possible to prevent further damage,” said Dr. Williams of Atlanta Medical Center.
Doctors are now urging everyone to stop participating in the challenge as it may lead to severe nerve damage to their hands.
