Renna O’Rourke, Tempe, Arizona teen passes away after trying viral internet ‘dusting’ challenge which involves users inhaling keyboard cleaning spray for views and to get followers.
Fame at what cost…? An Arizona teen seeking social media adulation has died after attempting a ‘dangerous’ internet meme challenge called ‘dusting.’
Renna O’Rourke, 19, of Tempe, AZ, passed away Sunday after trying the viral trend – also known as ‘huffing’ or ‘chroming’ — in which social media users film themselves inhaling keyboard cleaning spray to get high for views online.
‘She always said, ‘I’m gonna be famous, Dad. Just you watch. I’m gonna be famous,’ and unfortunately, this is not under the most optimal of circumstances,’ Renna’s father, Aaron O’Rourke, told AZ Family.
Sudden-sniffing-death syndrome
Renna went into cardiac arrest and was rushed to the hospital after inhaling the cleaning spray. She remained unconscious in the intensive-care unit for a week before being declared brain-dead.
Her cause of death was sudden-sniffing-death syndrome, or inhalant abuse.
‘We don’t have children to bury them,’ Renna’s mother, Dana, told the outlet.
Dr. Randy Weisman, who heads the intensive care unit at Arizona’s HonorHealth Scottsdale Osborn Medical Center, said dusting makes the user feel high for a couple of minutes — but in that short amount of time, it can have an irreversible impact.
‘When [people] inhale these chemicals in the gas, it will actually replace the oxygen within their lungs and within the rest of their body,’ he told AZ Family.
‘Failure of the liver, heart failure, disease of the lungs,’ Weisman said of the resulting dangers.
According to Poison Control, most inhalant abusers are teenagers, likely because the products are easily accessible, 12 News reports.
Renna O’Rourke latest casualty of internet challenges gone wrong
Renna’s parents said they are sharing their daughter’s tragic story to raise awareness about the fatal trend, one of many over the years that has led to internet fame chasers being met with woeful consequences, including death.
‘There’s no ID required’ to buy the cleaner, Dana O’Rourke told AZ Family. ‘[The spray] is odorless.
‘[The method of getting high] is everything kids look for. They can afford it, they can get it, and it doesn’t show in Mom and Dad’s drug test.
‘Don’t take your kid’s word for it. Dig deep. Search their rooms. Don’t trust — and that sounds horrible, but it could save their life,’ the grieving parent added.
Dusting users get high off chemicals that are different than the other inhalants also popular among teens, such as ‘whippets,’ Dr. Weisman said.
Both are equally unsafe, he said, urging parents to talk to their children about the dangers of abusing household products.
Renna’s parents are finding a light in all of this darkness. She is an organ donor and will save at least six lives.
A GoFundme fundraiser to cover medical bills, burial costs, therapy costs, and the parents’ wish to spread awareness about the dangers of Huffing/Dusting has as of Friday afternoon raised $9,105.
