CENTRALIA, Wash. — Two students in Centralia have been arrested for arson after police say they burned a school’s Chromebook laptop on Thursday.
Lewis County Prosecuting Attorney Johathan Meyer says his office requested the two be held in Juvenile Detention, but the two were released to house arrest during court Friday morning.
Pictures of the damage shared with KIRO 7 by Centralia Police show a burned desk, pieces of safety pins and paperclips, and a computer with severely burned and melted plastic.
In a press release, Centralia Police Chief Andy Caldwell says the two students “are alleged to have intentionally set the laptop on fire” as first responders found a partially burned laptop with smoke pouring out from the battery compartment when they responded to the middle school.
Caldwell says this appears to be linked to a “disturbing” social media challenge where students set fire to electronics and share the videos on social media.
“These so-called ‘challenges’ promote reckless and dangerous behavior, posing significant risks to public safety, property, and the environment,” Caldwell said in the release.
The trend has also garnered attention across the nation, as the New York Division of the Department of Homeland Security posted a warning to parents. As does Caldwell, NYDHS urges parents to talk to their kids about the dangers of this kind of activity. Outside of the danger of fire, the toxic fumes are hazardous to people’s health, the NYDHS post says.
More tonight on KIRO 7 at 5 pm.
©2025 Cox Media Group
