The teen driver was doing a social media challenge at the time of the crash, police say

CENTRAL, La. (WAFB/Gray News) – Police in Louisiana have issued a warning about a dangerous social media challenge that officers say caused a major crash.

“People who post these things on TikTok and other social media platforms, who have no responsibility and care about your children, give them examples that entice children to follow them and we have exactly these types of accidents,” the Central Police said. Department Assistant Chief Cliff Ivey.

Police say a 17-year-old in a northbound vehicle went off the road as it approached the intersection of Central Thruway and Frenchtown Road on Monday afternoon. The car crossed the median and struck a southbound vehicle before stopping and catching fire.

Police warned of a dangerous social media challenge that officers say could... — Police warned of a dangerous social media challenge that officers say caused a major crash.(Central Police)

Police said statements from witnesses and the drivers involved indicate the northbound driver was playing a “drift” game, or challenge on social media platforms such as TikTok and YouTube, when he lost control of the vehicle.

According to officials, drift is loosely defined as intentional oversteer that results in a loss of traction.

“As the young man discovered yesterday, there are real-world consequences for the things we do, even though you see them in cyberspace, you don’t respawn in real life and your car doesn’t automatically recover, and people actually get hurt and killed our roads,” Ivey added.

Witnesses reported seeing the northbound vehicle weave back and forth repeatedly as far as O’Neal Lane before entering the city. They said the vehicle would sometimes “brake” other cars on the road.

Police are now calling on parents to warn their children against participating in the highly dangerous activity.

No one was seriously injured, police said.