3 Dead, 500 Hospitalized After Floods Caused by Storm in Egypt Carried Scorpions Into People’s Homes

At least three people have died and more than 500 were hospitalized after a thunderstorm brought an unusually high amount of rainfall to a city in Egypt over the weekend, resulting in a flash flood that carried several deadly scorpions into people’s homes, The Washington Post reports. 

The city of Aswan is considered one of the driest cities in the world, averaging about three millimeters of rain per year. On Friday and Saturday, Aswan was throttled by thunderstorms, hail, and strong winds, leading to power outages, damaged road and homes, and flooding.  

The fat-tailed scorpion can normally be found in the deserts of Egypt, but according to The Sun, video has surfaced showing the scorpions trying to get into someone’s house as the flood waters continued to rise. It’s thought to be one of the most dangerous species on the planet, and can kill a person within an hour of being stung without treatment. 

Ehab Hanafy, undersecretary of the Health Ministry in Aswan, maintains that the three deaths were “due to storm-related accidents” and “absolutely not because of scorpion stings.” Hanafy asserts that those who were hospitalized after being stung were given anti-venom doses and released, while Egyptian newspaper Al-Ahram reports doctors were asked to return from their vacations to help deal with the massive influx of cases.