Supporters of former President Donald Trump are spreading wild conspiracy theories after attendees of a rally in Arizona developed unexplained eye pain.
Following the former president’s event in Tucson on September 12, numerous rallygoers admitted themselves to emergency rooms after experiencing issues with their vision.
As revealed by News 4 Tucson, Trump invited 48 people from among the more than 2,000 attendees to sit behind him during his speech. The four dozen people were divided into two groups and sat to the left and right of Trump.
The outlet spoke to six individuals, all of whom were sitting stage right, who said they began feeling pain in their eyes as soon as they left the event. No one sitting stage left reported a single complaint regarding eye issues.
One attendee named Mayra Rodriguez told the outlet that her eyes began burning when she stepped outside the venue shortly after Trump’s speech ended.
Assuming the pain stemmed from allergies, Rodriguez started her nearly 90-minute drive back to Phoenix. Rodriguez said the pain became so unbearable after arriving home that she had to check herself into a nearby hospital.
Rodriguez said hospital staff repeatedly asked her whether she had been sprayed in the eyes with any substance, to which she said no.
The affected individuals who spoke to the outlet eventually got better, although their symptoms initially worsened over the following days.
A spokesperson for the Trump campaign confirmed to the outlet that it was aware of the complaints and said it was in the process of “collecting information.”
“We remain committed to the countless patriots that attend our high-energy, high-impact rallies across the country,” the spokesperson said.
The Secret Service, however, said it was not made aware of the incident. It followed up by stating that there were no known threats to Trump at this time.
Despite almost no information being available, Trump fans started churning out conspiracy theories about the incident.
Infowars’ Alex Jones frantically alleged that a new assassination attempt against Trump caused the issues.
“We’ve got to ask the question: was this a deliberate chemical attack aimed at Trump?” Jones asked. “Were these patriots collateral damage in another attempt to kill the president?”
In response to Jones, other conspiracy theorists chimed in with similar claims that linked the eye problems to a clandestine attack.
One user argued that a “microwave weapon” had been used on the crowd, while another referred to the incident as a “bioweapon attack.”
“Chemical warfare attack at Trump rally in Tucson,” a separate user added. “There is NOTHING they won’t do to try and stop him.”
The complaints are reminiscent of a 2023 incident where attendees of a blockchain-related conference in Hong Kong unexpectedly experienced eye damage.
The issue was believed to have been caused by incorrect lighting, particularly the use of ultraviolet lights on stage.
At this time, no conclusive evidence exists about what caused the eye problems in Tuscon.
Nevertheless, Trump fans appear convinced that the eye problems are linked to nefarious intent. Some even speculated that the so-called attack aimed to scare conservatives away from Trump rallies.
The incident comes just days after police arrested a gunman outside of Trump’s golf course in Florida in what many believe was yet another assassination attempt.
Internet culture is chaotic—but we’ll break it down for you in one daily email. Sign up for the Daily Dot’s web_crawlr newsletter here. You’ll get the best (and worst) of the internet straight into your inbox.
