Woman refuses to fly without her hairy crabs

A woman from Taiwan chose to abandon her flight home Monday after airport authorities refused to let her check the hairy crabs she was carrying, according to the local border authority.

The woman had brought eight kilograms of the seasonal delicacy back from a trip to Kunshan, Jiangsu Province, to share with her family and friends in Taiwan, according to a press release from the Shanghai Hongqiao Airport Frontier Inspection Station.

However, she had packed the crabs in two cartons that were likely to break open, so airport authorities refused to allow her through the security inspection point unless she left the crabs behind, said Chen Tao, an airport police officer.

Airport regulations require passengers to check hairy crabs as if they were luggage, so they have to be packed properly, Chen said.

Crabs must be packed into a specific kind of foam box that can be purchased at local seafood markets. Travelers can also buy boxes that can hold about 20 crabs at the airport for about 50 yuan each, according to an airport employee.

On Monday, the woman didn't have time to repack the crabs before her flight departed. Even though Chinese airports allow crabs to be transported, Chen reminded travelers that their destination countries might have rules against bringing in crabs. He suggested that travelers make sure that their destinations allows passengers to take crabs into the country.