TikTok Video of Birthday Cake Set on Fire Sparks Viral Frenzy

A TikTok video that began as a family Thanksgiving‑birthday celebration in Kansas City, Missouri, has taken the internet by storm, turning a simple cake into a viral spectacle.

The clip shows Kristina Hyde’s grandmother, Ann, preparing to sing “Happy Birthday” to her son, David, who sits beside her at the table.

Ann starts the song but then realizes she forgot something. She says, “Well, I guess, after we light it,” and reaches for a long lighter, deciding to flambé a baked Alaska that sits on the table.

Trey, Ann’s grandson, chimes in off‑camera, “We’ll start singing as you light it.”

Ann asks the group, “Ready?” and in a regretful move, pours a punch‑glass‑full of liquor over the dessert before lighting it on fire, before emptying the cup.

The fire spreads immediately, setting the cake, cup and tablecloth ablaze. Chaos erupts as David instinctively takes the still‑aflame cup from his mother and drops it, spreading the flames beyond the table and sending fiery utensils onto a rug on the floor.

Ann moves the flaming cake and places it on a wicker chair while Trey, David’s wife Ingrid, and other family members stamp out the spreading fire.

The family works in an eerily quiet manner, punctuated only by the clanging of plates and the whooshing of fabric smothering escaping flames.

The video ends with laughter from Peter, David’s brother, as he looks on in stunned silence.

The clip, along with a pair of other videos showing different angles of the blaze, has garnered millions of views on TikTok and spread to X, Instagram and Reddit, where it was dubbed a “silent birthday fire crash out.”

Viewers have posted a wide range of comments, from “This is the funniest thing in the world to me at this very moment” to “NOT THE CAT RUNNING FOR ITS LIFE” and “it just takes me out how none of them talk, it’s just a bunch of running and swatting and clanking.”

Comedy sketch influencer Madison Humphrey re‑created the fiery fiasco in a parody, playing the part of Ann.

TikTokers have also posted analyses of the event; one creator messaged Kristina for the scoop, while another suggested that Ann “was at that door ready to leave” after firing up the family flambé.

Grandma Ann clarified that she was going to grab a fire extinguisher but felt they probably didn’t have time for that, saying, “I was going to go for the fire extinguisher, but we probably didn’t have time for that, did we?”

She added that the door she can be seen running to in the video leads to the garage. Trey explained, “While she was going to the garage to get the fire extinguisher, I went back in a panic, and then you see the cat running.”

The Hyde family also clarified the timeline, stating that the incident actually happened three years ago and recently caught fire on the internet, making it a bit of unmentionable lore.

Trey said, “My uncle and aunt, they were like, ‘Do not say anything. Do not laugh,’” and that after the awkward silence, Ann returned from the garage, they talked, and then they had the cake.

Ann explained that David isn’t a fan of chocolate, so for his birthday she makes a baked Alaska with angel food cake and two layers of ice cream, usually strawberry, raspberry or vanilla.

She adds that a splash of grain alcohol on top is lit to achieve the blazing effect, which toasts the meringue frosting.

Trey remarked, “It’s like a fun process to watch, but she gave us more of a fun show than we expected.”

Ann also clarified that this wasn’t the first time she had made the dessert; the flaming dessert has been a Hyde family tradition for “very important events.” She said, “(David’s) not often here for his birthday, so this was really neat,” and that she had simply repeated a routine she had done very often, resulting in a surprise outcome.

The story first appeared on TODAY.com.