PUBG Mobile: A 16-year-old in Madhya Pradesh dies after playing for six hours

The craze behind mobile-based popular battle royale title, PUBG Mobile might have reduced by a fraction over the past few months but there are still millions of Indians hooked to the game. As per a report by the Times of India, a 16-year-old teen died of cardiac arrest after playing PUBG Mobile for six hours at a stretch. The deceased, identified as Furkhan Qureshi, was a 12 standard student hailing from the town of Neemuch in Madhya Pradesh. According to the family, Furkhan began playing the game on 26 May, shortly after lunch. Furkhan’s family states that he collapsed on the floor at around 7 pm that evening, agitated and shouting at other players as he did. [caption id=“attachment_6504841” align=“alignnone” width=“1280”] PUBG Mobile being played on an Android smartphone. Image: tech2/ Omkar P[/caption] As per the report, Furkan’s sister Fiza Qureshi was sitting beside him when the incident occurred. “My brother was playing PUBG with some of his friends. Suddenly, he started shouting ‘carry out the blast..carry out blast’. Then he threw his earphones and mobile and cried saying, “Ayan I will not play with you. I lost the game because of you.” (Also read: PUBG addiction was not what caused death of 20-year-old Telangana boy, says doctor) Soon after the incident, Qureshi was rushed to a hospital where he was declared brought dead. “The boy was brought to the hospital without a pulse. We tried to revive him, but failed in our attempt,” said Ashok Jain, a cardiologist who examined Furkhan told reporters. (Also Read: PUBG Mobile ban: Regulating gaming and digital addiction in India) Jain said as Furkan’s family told us he was a swimmer, his heart seemed to be healthy. “The excitement of the game might have caused a surge in adrenaline causing cardiac arrest. I appeal to children to stay away from such games as excitement could cause cardiac arrests,” he said. Furkhan’s brother Mohammad Hashim also said that he was addicted to PUBG and played the game for close to 18 hours a day. “I also used to play the same game but after the death of my brother I have deleted it from my mobile phone,” he said. A case has been registered by the police and further investigation on what triggered the 16-year-old’s death is underway.