Popularity of electric prank on university campuses triggers safety concerns

An electric prank toy has recently become popular on campuses across China, amid concerns about the danger of the toy that could create a transient voltage of 600 volts.

Electric prank toys can be easily found on taobao. com, China’s e- commerce giant. The toys are being sold in the form of pens, key chains, gums or Rubik’s cubes, with a price of less than 10 yuan ($ 1.47) each.

“It won’t hurt people, and many primary school students buy it,” a reseller on taobao. com from Hangzhou, East China’s Zhejiang Province, told the Global Times on Thursday.

“We dare not try this toy ourselves, and do not know its ‘ power,’” said a reseller of the electric toy in South China’s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, news outlet cztv. com reported Wednesday.

When people touch the electric toy, they would get the feeling of an electric shock for a moment and be scared, said cztv. com.

According to cztv. com, there is a pressure device embedded in the electric toy, which can create a voltage of 600 volts instantly.

“The electric current is generated only for a moment, which would not hurt people. But people with heart problems and young children should avoid this kind of toy,” He Jufeng, a senior electrician in Guangxi, told cztv. com.

Dangerous toys have always been around campuses in China.

Police in Urumqi, Northwest China’s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region detained a retailer in June who sold toothpick crossbows, after a 10- yearold boy sustained a severe injury to his right eye.

A toothpick crossbow is as big as the palm and is usually made of metal, but is capable of shooting a toothpick up to eight meters.

Public security bureaus across China have been cracking down on the sales of the toy, including in Hainan, Sichuan and Zhejiang provinces.