As if folks in Nashville didn't have enough to contend with after this week's catastrophic flooding, unverified press reports on Wednesday gave rise to a rumor that flesh-eating piranhas escaped from a local aquarium and were roaming free in a flooded shopping mall.
The rumor spread rapidly via Facebook and Twitter postings, e.g.:
News Flash: Piranha's on the loose in Opry Mills Mall! All the salt water fish at the Aquarium Restaurant died during the flood except the Piranha's who are able to live in fresh water and are now swimming around somewhere in Opry Mills Mall.
Thursday's papers confirmed that Opry Mills Mall was under two feet of water and that some of the fish in the Aquarium Restaurant's 200,000-gallon tank had perished, but said reports of escaped piranhas were untrue.
It's all too reminiscent of a rumor outbreak during Hurricane Katrina in 2005, when sharks and alligators were said to be prowling the flooded streets of New Orleans, feeding on stranded people and lost pets. No actual sightings were ever confirmed.
Read more:
• Piranha Reported Loose at Opry Mills Mall
• Opry Mills Still Closed; Piranha Escape Reports False
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