Rodent sighting causes mass panic, stampede on Taipei metro

During rush hour on Wednesday inside the Taipei MRT, hundreds of passengers were spooked by a little brown rat.

At around 9:04 am that morning a subway train stopped at Daan Park Station and picked up a batch of passengers. At that moment, a few of the passengers noticed a rodent scurrying across the floor. Naturally, they screamed, yelled, and hurried in any direction away from the creature.

Fellow commuters in other carriages soon caught sight of the screaming people and began panicking as well, transferring the terror to still other carriages farther down the line. This domino effect resulted in a veritable stampede that left two passengers trampled upon. Fortunately, they were not seriously injured, reports Apple Daily.

The mayhem couldn’t help but cause some to think that the 2014 Taipei Metro attack was repeating itself. That May, a madman went on a stabbing spree on a subway train, resulting in four dead and 24 injured.

Once the train reached the next station, commuters fled out of the carriages, knocking over some of those who were queuing up, waiting to enter. Metro officials quickly took hold of the situation and in less than five minutes the subway line resumed normal operations.

Afterward, the train had to be taken in for some heavy cleaning. Images of the aftermath of the panic reveal smartphones, tablets, shoes, and bags strewn around the train. In what looks like a scene straight out of Train to Busan, spilled drinks and snacks also created the appearance of blood-stained floors.

In the end, the presumed culprit was nowhere to be found. According to Apple Daily, the Taipei Metro captures, on average, three to five rats a month.

[Images via Apple Daily]

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