Biting centipede to be deported back to India

A tiger centipede bit a Dartford woman while she was sleeping after creeping into her holiday luggage.

The 10cm long creature bit the woman after travelling in her suitcase back from a trip to Asia.

It is thought that the stowaway, which can reach lengths of up to 18cm, must have crept into her bedding while she slept. The woman was taken to Darent Valley Hospital's Urgent Care Centre where she was treated for the nasty nip.



Matron Liz Frazer, who was on duty when the couple arrived at 3.15am on November 22, said: "We could see she was already starting to have a mild allergic reaction so we treated the wound and gave her a short course of steroids to dampen it down.

She added: "It was an aggressive little creature. "It spat on the side of the box when someone looked at it. We phoned the RSPCA and they took the centipede away.

"Apparently it has to go back to the British Museum and they will send it back to Kerala in southern India, where it came from."