Hundreds Injured After Plague Of Scorpions Sweeps Through Egypt In Huge 'Biblical' Storm

Hundreds have been injured after a storm in Egypt caused loads of scorpions to be displaced from their natural habitat.

Damaging winds, large hailstones and torrential rain has been recorded in the southern city of Aswan.

The six-legged arachnids were looking for anywhere safe to hide and many were washed into the streets.

While citizens were trying to remain safe from the storms, they ended up being stung by the venomous animals.

According to the BBC, a health ministry official claims more than 500 people have been wounded by the scorpion invasion.

Some doctors have been forced to put Covid-19 vaccinations on hold while they administer anti-venom to hundreds of people.

The health ministry has worked quickly to get the life-saving anti-venom to medical centres in villages near mountains and deserts.

Fat-tailed scorpions that live in Egypt are some of the deadliest in the world and their venom can kill a human in less than an hour.

If you're stung, the venom can cause difficulty breathing, muscle twitching and unusual head movements.

Alamy

There are hundreds of people now without a proper shelter after the storm wreaked havoc across the region.

The New York Times described the storm as carrying 'biblical fury', which, if connected with the scorpion invasion, conjures up a very real imagining of the plagues described in the Bible's Exodus chapters.

Mourad Abazid tol the news outlet: "Thank God, no one died; we rescued people, but our houses are gone. We don't know what we're going to do now."

At least 103 homes have been partly or completely damaged and people have gathered at the Aswan governor's office to protest over the lack of electricity, water or any government assistance.

Deathstalker scorpions are common for people in Aswan, especially in the summer.

There are dozens of stings recorded throughout the year, however to have more than 500 over such a short period of time was 'unheard of'.

The NYT reports how hospitals had to 'dig into their anti-venom stashes' to ensure everyone had a chance to avoid suffering serious injuries.

There were initially three deaths linked to the scorpions, however they were later confirmed to have died from electrocution.

Topics: News

Stewart Perrie

Stewart Perrie is a Trending Journalist at LADbible. His first job was as a newsreader and journalist at the award winning Sydney radio station, Macquarie Radio. He was solely responsible for the content broadcast on multiple stations across Australia when the MH17, Germanwings and AirAsia disasters unfolded. Stewart has covered the conflict in Syria for LADbible, interviewing a doctor on the front line, and has contributed to the hugely successful UOKM8 campaign.

@stewartperrie