Woman screams after spotting cockroach in Tel Aviv cafe, people flee thinking it to be terror attack
Tel Aviv cafe
We all have squirmed in sheer terror when a cockroach has come too close to our liking. From going pale instantly to tip-toeing around to a higher vantage point to avoid another face-off with the insect,most opt for the flight approach from the "flight-or-fight" analogy. Similarly, awoman in Israel took the "flight"approachbut the consequences became a touch too dramatic.
It was a routine Saturday evening with people enjoying food and music in the Dizengoff Cafe in the capital city of Tel Aviv. However, things took a chaotic turnwhen a woman spotted a cockroach and screamed so loudly that patrons at the venue as well as an adjacent eatery, started to flee the spot, overturning tables and chairs - fearing they were under a terrorist attack.
Such was the adrenaline rush across the room that two people sustained light injuries from broken glass during the kerfuffle. Alarmed by people bolting to the exits and seeking relief, police units were sent to the cafe to sweep for suspects.
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Authorities find the cause of commotion
After some calm was brought by the officers, it was determined that the woman's panicked screaming was in response to the sight of a cockroach, not a dreaded terror operative.
“It was the scariest thing that ever happened to me,” one of the eyewitnesses was quoted as saying by The Times of Israel.
"People overturned tables and everyone around started screaming and running and trampling each other. A lot of glasses shattered on the way, and people fell on the glass and got cut," she added.
The witness who is eight months pregnant had to head straight to an emergency clinic to ascertain if her pregnancy was unharmed after the commotion.
Netizens found the humour in the situation with some saying they empathised with the woman and her situation. One said, "As someone who had a deep and abiding hatred of cockroaches, and once *in Tel Aviv no less* had my cat "gift" me one on my pillow... I get where she was coming from," while another added, Flying cockroaches are damn scary but...."
Israel is home to the common cockroach, but also has large, flying species, all known to spark a deep fight-or-flight response in people.
Notably, cockroaches and pests are a cause of general nuisance to the people of Israel, especially those living in the coastal city.The fear of cockroaches is called katsaridaphobia.
(With inputs from agencies)
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