So, a Scorpion Fell on Someone's Head and Stung Them During a United Flight

United: "Things can't get worse, right?" Scorpion: "Hold my beer."

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(Image credit: Getty Images)

First, there was Leggings Gate. Then, there was "Holy Crap, This Bleeding Man Is Being Dragged off a Plane Against His Will Gate." And now, we give you Scorpion Gate—the latest in a string of PR nightmares for United Airlines.

While flying from Houston to Calgary on a United flight, passenger Richard Bell was allegedly stung by a rogue scorpion who flung itself from the overhead bin and landed atop his head.

"My husband felt something in his hair," Linda Bell tells CNN. "He grabbed it out of his hair and it fell onto his dinner table. As he was grabbing it by the tail it stung him."

Linda says her husband was able to throw the scorpion into the aisle, at which point another passenger cried "Oh my god, that's a scorpion." The critter was eventually flushed down the toilet by a flight attendant. United's thoughts on the matter?

"Our flight attendants helped a customer who was stung by what appeared to be a scorpion on a flight last week," they said in a statement. "Our crew immediately consulted with a MedLink physician on the ground who provided guidance throughout the incident and assured our crew that it was not a life-threatening matter."

It's unclear how the scorpion arrived on the plane, but chalk it up to #UnitedProblems.

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Mehera Bonner
Entertainment Editor

Mehera Bonner is a celebrity and entertainment news writer who enjoys Bravo and Antiques Roadshow with equal enthusiasm. She was previously entertainment editor at Marie Claire and has covered pop culture for over a decade.