Just days after Audacy reported on the new TikTok trend that calls for people to mix cocktails in gallon jugs, many college students transported in ambulances from gatherings in Massachusetts were found with these “borgs.”
This stands for “black out rage gallon” according to the university.
“In recent weeks, this binge drinking trend has been increasingly depicted on TikTok and seen on college campuses across the country,” said a university news update.
In one TikTok video that had 1.7 million likes as of Wednesday, a TikTok creator demonstrates how to make a borg by dumping out half of a gallon of water. He then fills the empty half up with vodka and pours flavoring into the jug.
Dr. George F. Koob, the director of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism at the National Institutes of Health, told CBS News that recipes that call for a half gallon of liquor – around 43 servings of alcohol – could be dangerous.
“Consuming this much alcohol would be fatal for the vast majority of people, even if spread out over a full day,” he said. “It is unknown how many students actually follow borg recipes that call for a half gallon of vodka, but doing so could turn deadly depending on how much they end up consuming.”
According to officials from Amherst, Mass., and UMass Amherst, the Amherst Fire Department handled requests for 28 ambulance transports from student gatherings Saturday. Other TikTok videos also appear to show UMass celebrations that include borgs, which people write names on such as “Rick and Borgy” and “Justin Borgber.”
“Activation of regional ambulance support provided prompt and essential service today in response to a significant number of alcohol intoxication cases related to March 4 off-campus student gatherings,” said a university news update. According to the fire department, none of the cases were life threatening.
Amherst Police and UMass Police also reported two arrests for underage possession of alcohol.
This is not the first time that local law enforcement has responded to the area to deal with college students around St. Patrick’s Day. According to MassLive, the student gatherings observed this year were part of the unofficial Blarney Blowout celebrations that have resulted in arrests in the past.
Per the Massachusetts Daily Collegian, there were 55 arrests during a 2014 Blarney Blowout celebration.
“I was outraged to see the impact of the so-called Blarney Blowout on our campus and community this weekend. Despite our best efforts over the past week to inform our students of the consequences of unruly alcohol-fueled behavior, by midday yesterday there had already been dozens of arrests and numerous large gatherings broken up. It was a sad and difficult day for our campus and for the town of Amherst,” said a comment from UMass Amherst Chancellor Kumble R. Subbaswamy.
However, “UMass officials said this is the first time the university has observed notable use of borgs,” and in the wake of the events this weekend they are considering ways to improve alcohol education.
“Currently, all incoming students participate in required education called Alcohol.edu which includes information about the size of standard drinks, and physiological and medical risks of binge drinking,” said the university.
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