A Chinese city has launched an operation to find dozens of crocodiles that escaped in floods in recent days, authorities learned Tuesday.
Heavy rain caused by a typhoon in southern China last week caused flooding in Hong Kong and other areas.
Near the city of Maoming in Guangdong province, flooding caused a lake at a crocodile breeding farm to overflow and nearly 70 of them took the opportunity to escape, local media reported.
Authorities are “working to clarify the matter,” the local rescue service office told AFP, without saying how many crocodiles were in the wild or whether any had already been caught.
A video published online by state-run newspaper Beijing News shows rescue workers in red uniforms inspecting flooded fields using boats.
Other images show several animals about two meters long lying on a road with their jaws sealed with red tape.
“The crocodiles are still in the water and several management agencies are working to catch them,” state-run China National Radio (CNR) reported, citing local agricultural authorities.
“This particular situation is being investigated,” the radio added, “including the number of crocodiles involved.”
In China, crocodiles are farmed for both their skin and their meat, which is sometimes used in traditional medicine.
In addition to “the largest crocodile farm in the country,” the flood-affected region is also home to a theme park dedicated to crocodiles, CNR said.
“Crocodiles are bloodthirsty animals – they can actually bite people,” warned one concerned netizen on the social network Weibo. “Don’t worry, they’ll leave you alone once they eat you,” joked another.