"Giant super-strong radioactive rats"?????

[seawasp]

One of the local radio stations (I think WPYX, Pyx-106) has been reporting about an "outbreak" of "irradiated" or "radioactive" (they confuse the terms) rats ("at least 13" long!") in three or four counties, apparently from Knolls Atomic Power Labs. I thought it was a joke, but it's been going on quite a bit and they had people apparently calling in and describing the situation seriously. If it's a joke, they've carried it way too far. And these things are coming through the sewers and they're having people put 45lb+ weights on the toilet lids to keep the things from coming through?

What???

I must get verification of this. Or else prove it's a hoax and tell 'em they've really gone stupidly over the line.

Comments

Update...

[seawasp]

... so far, I have found no confirmation. This is looking more and more like idiots on the air. This was of course my suspicion, but I would've thought that as they were also having their regular newsreader person confirm the "story" they'd realize this could be panicking for people silly enough to believe it.

Re: Update...

[brownkitty.livejournal.com]

"Rodents Of Unusual Size? I don't believe they exist." *WHUMP!*

Re: Update...

[zyxwvut.livejournal.com]

ROUS'es... bwah hah hah!

Z

P.S.: You'd think they'd have the common decency to pull this kinda crap on April 1st, at least. I actually had the misfortune to learn about September 11th from a rock-&-roll station; I came in at about the time that someone called in to specifically ask if this was a "War of the Worlds"-type deal.

P.P.S.: We actually didn't listen to any radio on our recent spin through Capitaland, but if we had, it probably would have been Q-104.

Re: Update...

[sinanju.livejournal.com]

Hey, pay close attention! We could be witnessing the 21st century equivalent of Orson Welles' martian invasion....

[cygny.livejournal.com]

In the light of terrorist actions and radioactive whatevers, I think a lot of people will buy this story. I hope that if it's a joke, the ones who invented it will be punished.

Quick!

[gridlore.livejournal.com]

Call Ken Hite!

Sounds like morning show stupidity. Which is why I listen to KFOG, which has a morning crew that does weird stuff like play music and give news and traffic updates.

[sub-musashi.livejournal.com]

That sounds exactly like a joke that PYX would do - good music, but they're idiots.

You're local to the Capital District? I grew up in Latham - we probably passed each other at Armadillo Games :)

RAUS

[(Anonymous)]

When they were in Scotia or when they were in Schenectady?

Hmm 13" from nose to the end of the tail.. that doesn't sound THAT big.

Size: Norway rat adult's head+body length is about 7-9 in (18-25 cm); tail length is 6-8 in (15-21 cm); weight is 7-18 ounces, up to 20.5 ounces.

Or on the other hand..... the REAL Rodent of Unusual Size.

Roughly the size of a buffalo, a giant rodent that roamed the banks of an ancient Venezuelan river some 8 million years ago, dining on sea grass and dodging crocodiles, was an evolutionary sibling to modern-day guinea pigs.

The largest rodent that ever lived, Phoberomys pattersoni, weighed about 1,545 pounds (700 kilograms) - more than 10 times the size of today’s rodent heavyweight, the 110-pound (50 kilograms) capybara.

http://www.innovations-report.de/html/berichte/biowissenschaften_chemie/bericht-21638.html


The voice from the Shadows

Re: RAUS

[sub-musashi.livejournal.com]

Schenectady, back when they were a full service store and not all GW.

700 kg, dear god. I wonder if guinea pigs spend their days longing for when their cousins ruled the earth.