Scorpion stowaway found in soft toys at Covid test center

Employees of the coronavirus test center in Zuidland found an unexpected stowaway in a box of stuffed animals - a scorpion. The critter was found when it stung a GGD employee who was unpacking the toys. The employee was taken to hospital for treatment, but was not seriously injured, the Rotterdam-Rijnmond ambulance service said on Facebook.

The test center regularly gets stuffed animals delivered, used to cheer up children after they got tested. This load came from China, so the scorpion made quite the journey.

While unpacking the toys, the GGD employee felt something prick his thumb. He first thought there was something sharp in one of the toys, but when he let go of the stuffed animal he was holding, he saw the creepy little stowaway.

Other GGD employees caught the animal, put it in a jar and sent it with the stung employee to hospital for a checkup. Both GGD employee and scorpion survived the incident relatively unharmed.