Fact Check: No, it is not raining worms in China

Recently, a video has taken over the national and international media and various social media platforms, claiming that ‘millions of earthworms fell from the sky while raining in Benji, Liaoning, China.’

See the viral posts and reports here-

National Media- Banglavision News, Daily Inqilab

International Media- New York Post, The Mirror, The Jerusalem Post, Times Now, Anandabajar

Social Media- Facebook, Facebook, Facebook, Twitter, Twitter , Tiktok & Tiktok. 

See Screenshots Here-

Newschecker-Bangladesh has found the viral claim to be false. 

Fact-Check/Verification:

The video that went viral saying, ‘Liaoning, China is being flooded by worms with rain,’ showed that objects on car roofs and streets appeared similar to earthworms. People were also carrying umbrellas while outside. 

Looking closely at the video, we will notice that the wormlike objects are not all around the ground. Moreover, no movements are noticeable among the worms. There are certain areas visible in the video that has no worms. 

See here-

New York Post published the news headline, “China pummeled by ‘rain of worms’ as residents asked to carry umbrellas”, on March 10, 2023. They said Citizens of the Chinese province of Liaoning were told to find shelter after it looked like it started to rain worms. They also referred to a viral video in their report. The report mentioned that the mystery of the objects is yet to be unravelled. 

Defending the New York Post’s report, Sina media wrote in their report, “On March 10 local time, the US “New York Post” reported that “China has encountered a biological disaster”, based on a social media video. In the video, “little bugs” are everywhere, and people have to “shelter” with umbrellas. This report shocked many American netizens, and some even called it “the end is coming.” However, some people questioned the authenticity of the report.

Observer.com found that related videos were circulated on the Internet in China at the end of last month, and the “biological disaster” that made the “New York Post” make a fuss was nothing but poplar flowers that are very common in China.”Almost every news and social media post claimed that Beijing, China, was attacked by worms. However, there were no records of such incidents in Beijing.

According to the Sina report, this video went viral in China around the last of the previous month. They also reported that the place is outside of Beijing. Instead, the car number plates suggest the city should be in Liaoning province, China. 

What are these worm-like objects?

While digging into the fact, we came across a similar video on a Chinese video-sharing platform that says, ‘’The spikes of poplar flowers in Benxi, Liaoning covered the roof of the car. Netizens: The car just washed was for nothing! #Caterpillar#Intensive phobia’’

See the Video here- Poplar flower dropping off the tree

The video depicts the streets and car roofs covered with Poplar tree flowers spike in Benxi, Liaoning, China. 

The poplar tree is a prevalent tree species in China, particularly in Liaoning province. During the spring, flowers blossoms in the poplar tree. Before that, the spikes of the tree fell off from the trees, which are wormlike. It happens every year during the spring.

See About Poplar trees here- https://leafyplace.com/poplar-trees/ 

Find more about the Poplar trees here- The New York Times

 Based on an old video of such events, the rumour spread quickly.

Conclusion:

There was no worm rain in China. Instead, it was an old video of falling spikes of Poplar trees off the trees in Liaoning, China. 

Results: False

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