Whether it was the last remnant of the Sharknado frenzy or an unintentional plug for Shark Week, an unexpected passenger had a group of New York City subway riders sensing something was fishy on Wednesday.
A dead shark was found on the Queens-bound N train by passengers, resulting in the car being evacuated in order to dispose of the fish out of water.
Riders were ordered off the train car at Queensboro Plaza before the train traveled to the end of the line and the shark carcass was put in a garbage bag and placed in the trash. The shark was approximately 18 inches long and was still wet when it was found. The train, which originated on Surf Avenue in Coney Island, was then inspected and returned to service, according to the MTA.
Some passengers began posing with the shark, adding props like a soda can and a cigarette to the animal, one subway rider told CNN. Metropolitan Transportation Authority spokesperson Kevin Ortiz also had some fun with the shark sighting.
It’s illegal to own a sand shark as a pet or transport it on a train in New York unless it’s in a tank or container. How the shark ended up on the train has not been determined, the MTA announced.
The shark’s mysterious appearance on the train coincides with the popular “Shark Week” on Discovery Channel, leading to conspiracy theories from people posting on the hashtag #sharkweek that it was some type of guerrilla promotion. A Discovery spokesperson told Reuters the company had no involvement.
The subway shark marked the second mysterious dead shark sighting in two weeks, as a 5-foot-long shark was found in front of the Sea Dog Brew Pub on Nantucket a week earlier.