# Is this story about an eel devouring a man's internals plausible? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 2, 2010, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-story-about-an-eel-devouring-a-mans-internals-plausible/538047 "2010-05-02T17:37:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Happy\_Poster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c89c15/32.png) [@Happy\_Poster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Poster)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2010, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-story-about-an-eel-devouring-a-mans-internals-plausible/538047/1 "2010-05-02T17:37:45Z")
I wonder if this rather grusome tale is plausible; I link to the story without further comment: [The Sun](http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/2954500/Chef-dies-after-feeling-eel.html) ---
**Author:** ![ivan\_astikov](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/58f4c7/32.png) [@ivan\_astikov](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivan_astikov)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2010, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-story-about-an-eel-devouring-a-mans-internals-plausible/538047/2 "2010-05-02T17:58:38Z")
The clue is in the name of the source of this “news story” — don’t believe anything you ever read in The Scum. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2010, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-story-about-an-eel-devouring-a-mans-internals-plausible/538047/3 "2010-05-02T17:59:41Z")
On the one hand, eels are quite resilient animals - someone asked me to suggest an animal that could be inserted into a human rectum with hope of its survival, I’d probably suggest an eel (they’re pre-lubricated too). And the story only mentions ‘bowels’, which could be talking about just a small part of the victim’s insides. On the other hand, the story originates in China, and is being reported by The Stun. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Poster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c89c15/32.png) [@Happy\_Poster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Poster)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2010, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-story-about-an-eel-devouring-a-mans-internals-plausible/538047/4 "2010-05-02T18:02:11Z")
> [@ivan\_astikov](#): > > The clue is in the name of the source of this “news story” — don’t believe anything you ever read in The Scum. You’ve always struck me as more of a Mirror person 😃 ---
**Author:** ![yabob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yabob/32/2821_2.png) [@yabob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yabob)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2010, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-story-about-an-eel-devouring-a-mans-internals-plausible/538047/5 "2010-05-02T18:09:06Z")
It appears as a more clearly labeled spoof here, 2 days earlier than the Sun: > **[Chinese Bloke Dies In 'Eel Up The Bum Prank' Gone Wrong](https://www.thespoof.com/spoof-news/world/74155/chinese-bloke-dies-in-eel-up-the-bum-prank-gone-wrong)** > > When Chinese chef Lee Kee Woof got a bit bladdered on beer and rice wine the other day, he had no idea that the consequences of his binge would leave him dead. Or he probably wouldn't have done it. As Lee Kee Woof passed out from his excess, his m… Although, you have to give the Sun credit for their headline. ---
**Author:** ![BrotherCadfael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@BrotherCadfael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrotherCadfael)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2010, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-story-about-an-eel-devouring-a-mans-internals-plausible/538047/6 "2010-05-02T18:15:15Z")
Here’s your handy guide to the readers of British press: > [@Yes](#): > > **Hacker:** Don’t tell me about the press. I know exactly who reads the papers: the _[Daily Mirror](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daily_Mirror)_ is read by people who think they run the country; _[The Guardian](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Guardian)_ is read by people who think they ought to run the country; _[The Times](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Times)_ is read by people who actually do run the country; the _[Daily Mail](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daily_Mail)_ is read by the wives of the people who run the country; the _[Financial Times](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Financial_Times)_ is read by people who own the country; _[The Morning Star](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Morning_Star)_ is read by people who think the country ought to be run by another country; and _[The Daily Telegraph](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Daily_Telegraph)_ is read by people who think it already is. > \*\* > Sir Humphrey:\*\* Prime Minister, what about the people who read _[The Sun](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Sun_%28newspaper%29)_? > \*\* > Bernard:\*\* _Sun_ readers don’t care who runs the country, as long as she’s got big tits. ---
**Author:** ![lazybratsche](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ba8739/32.png) [@lazybratsche](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lazybratsche)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2010, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-story-about-an-eel-devouring-a-mans-internals-plausible/538047/7 "2010-05-02T21:26:17Z")
> [@BrotherCadfael](#): > > [INDENT] Here’s your handy guide to the readers of British press: This is a total hijack, but can you translate that in a bit more detail for this clueless but interested Yank? I mean, I usually go to the BBC or the Economist for world news, and pick up some of the bigger domestic British news along the way, but I hardly have a clue what all’s being referenced in the quote. Though I have caught on that the Sun is a junky tabloid, with plenty of gratuitous tits to maintain it’s readership… ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Poster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c89c15/32.png) [@Happy\_Poster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Poster)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2010, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-story-about-an-eel-devouring-a-mans-internals-plausible/538047/8 "2010-05-02T21:34:44Z")
> [@lazybratsche](#): > > This is a total hijack, but can you translate that in a bit more detail for this clueless but interested Yank? I mean, I usually go to the BBC or the Economist for world news, and pick up some of the bigger domestic British news along the way, but I hardly have a clue what all’s being referenced in the quote. > > Though I have caught on that the Sun is a junky tabloid, with plenty of gratuitous tits to maintain it’s readership… It’s a very well known quote from a British sitcom called “Yes Minister” (and subsequently “Yes Prime Minister”) that is about the UK civil service… Well worth watching. The biases have changed very little since then, even though it must be 25 years ago now; in fact the only thing I would mention since you mention the beeb is that around that time old Dennis was saying the BBC (not mentioned there) was full of “bloody poofs and trots”… that hasn’t changed much 😉 ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2010, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-story-about-an-eel-devouring-a-mans-internals-plausible/538047/9 "2010-05-03T14:16:12Z")
> [@](#): > > The 50cm long Asian swamp eel was allegedly inserted into the unnamed man’s bottom, after he passed out drunk, by pals playing a prank on him. Whatever happened to writing on the dudes face with a sharpie? ---
**Author:** ![lazybratsche](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ba8739/32.png) [@lazybratsche](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lazybratsche)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2010, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-story-about-an-eel-devouring-a-mans-internals-plausible/538047/10 "2010-05-03T14:48:59Z")
Oh, and back to the topic, the story as told seems vaguely plausible to me. At least if you don’t want to take the “devoured” part at face value. A small puncture in the intestines can be fatal, especially if it isn’t treated promptly. ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2010, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-story-about-an-eel-devouring-a-mans-internals-plausible/538047/11 "2010-05-03T15:11:35Z")
> [@lazybratsche](#): > > Oh, and back to the topic, the story as told seems vaguely plausible to me. At least if you don’t want to take the “devoured” part at face value. A small puncture in the intestines can be fatal, especially if it isn’t treated promptly. The original source labels the story as fictitious. As far as vaguely plausible, if an eel got in there I suppose it could do some damage. But I seriously doubt that you could get a live foot-long eel into a passed-out guy’s rectum. I would think that he’d have to be conscious and cooperative. Eager, even. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Poster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c89c15/32.png) [@Happy\_Poster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Poster)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2010, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-story-about-an-eel-devouring-a-mans-internals-plausible/538047/12 "2010-05-03T16:54:49Z")
> [@CookingWithGas](#): > > The original source labels the story as fictitious. As far as vaguely plausible, if an eel got in there I suppose it could do some damage. But I seriously doubt that you could get a live foot-long eel into a passed-out guy’s rectum. I would think that he’d have to be conscious and cooperative. Eager, even. It’s not completely certain that it is labelled as fictious actually… I don’t speak any Chinese but this apparently is the original: [http://www.chinanews.com.cn/sh/news/2010/04-28/2250979.shtml](http://www.chinanews.com.cn/sh/news/2010/04-28/2250979.shtml) Google translate does enough of a translation of it to suggest that it is being reported as truthful in China. ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2010, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-story-about-an-eel-devouring-a-mans-internals-plausible/538047/13 "2010-05-03T19:56:46Z")
> [@Angry Lurker](#): > > It’s not completely certain that it is labelled as fictious actually… I don’t speak any Chinese but this apparently is the original: [http://www.chinanews.com.cn/sh/news/2010/04-28/2250979.shtml](http://www.chinanews.com.cn/sh/news/2010/04-28/2250979.shtml) > > Google translate does enough of a translation of it to suggest that it is being reported as truthful in China. Aha. The _original_ original. Judging from the poor translation, it appears he survived, and the cirumstances are not described in such detail, though it does appear that alcohol was involved. So the article linked above in TheSpoof may have been a fictionalized account of a real event, rather than made up of whole cloth. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2010, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-story-about-an-eel-devouring-a-mans-internals-plausible/538047/14 "2010-05-03T20:11:13Z")
Keep in mind that Chinese newspapers have stolen news stories from the Onion, marketed them as truth, and gave no attribution. ---
**Author:** ![Autolycus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/22d042/32.png) [@Autolycus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Autolycus)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2010, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-story-about-an-eel-devouring-a-mans-internals-plausible/538047/15 "2010-05-05T03:45:46Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > someone asked me to suggest an animal that could be inserted into a human rectum with hope of its survival, I’d probably suggest an eel (they’re pre-lubricated too). In fact, it’s funny you mention that, because there is visual confirmation of this claim online, although it’s unclear how vibrant the eels are afterward. If you have an iron stomach and are not easily disturbed, search around online for ‘Eel Girl.’ This is your one and only warning! ---
**Author:** ![Roland\_Orzabal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c2a13f/32.png) [@Roland\_Orzabal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roland_Orzabal)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2010, 4:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-story-about-an-eel-devouring-a-mans-internals-plausible/538047/16 "2010-05-05T04:23:56Z")
I have nothing of note to add, but I did wish to share that I originally read the thread title as referencing a “story about an eel devouring a man’s internets”. The resulting mental image was far less gruesome, but in many ways, [equally compelling](http://img101.imageshack.us/i/eel.jpg/). ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2010, 11:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-story-about-an-eel-devouring-a-mans-internals-plausible/538047/17 "2010-05-05T11:18:30Z")
> [@Roland\_Orzabal](#): > > I have nothing of note to add, but I did wish to share that I originally read the thread title as referencing a “story about an eel devouring a man’s internets”. > > The resulting mental image was far less gruesome, but in many ways, [equally compelling](http://img101.imageshack.us/i/eel.jpg/). Just wait till you see what a few of 'em can do to the insides of a hovercraft. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2010, 12:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-story-about-an-eel-devouring-a-mans-internals-plausible/538047/18 "2010-05-05T12:26:18Z")
> [@Autolycus](#): > > In fact, it’s funny you mention that, because there is visual confirmation of this claim online, although it’s unclear how vibrant the eels are afterward. If you have an iron stomach and are not easily disturbed, search around online for ‘Eel Girl.’ This is your one and only warning! Perhaps later. By which I mean; I hope to die first. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2010, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-story-about-an-eel-devouring-a-mans-internals-plausible/538047/19 "2010-05-05T15:50:56Z")
Eels are wimpy. Now imagine an “eel” that is mostly blind, has no bones, covered in slime, and can [willingly eat animals from the inside out](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hagfish#Feeding). ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2010, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-story-about-an-eel-devouring-a-mans-internals-plausible/538047/20 "2010-05-05T16:19:33Z")
And there is always [the nasal leech.](http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/discoblog/2010/02/24/ncbi-rofl-nasal-leech-infestations/) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-story-about-an-eel-devouring-a-mans-internals-plausible/538047.md?page=2)