TikTok bans the ‘milk crate challenge’ because of injuries

(CNN) — This summer’s viral craze of stacking milk crates in a pyramid and trying to climb them like stairs has been banned the app that helped give life to it.

TikTok has deleted search results for the hashtag “milk crate challenge” and explained in a statement that the challenge was publicizing a dangerous activity.

“TikTok prohibits content that promotes or glorifies dangerous acts, and we remove videos and redirect searches to our Community Guidelines to discourage such content,” a spokesperson said. “We encourage everyone to exercise caution in their behavior whether online or off.”

The challenge, like so many viral internet dares, began as a simple premise with often funny results: Someone gathers a bunch of milk crates and stacks them in a pyramid formation, then attempts to step up one side and down the other without the crates faltering underneath them (but the crates always topple, and the person walking them goes down with them).

A search for the hashtag Friday morning brings up a “No results found” screen on TikTok. “This phrase may be associated with behavior or content that violates our guidelines,” the results said.

People attempting the challenge are getting hurt according to a local news report. That prompted a Virginia orthopedic surgeon to warn against the stunt at a time when emergency rooms and medical personnel are overwhelmed with Covid-19 patients.