Earlier today we were reminding you not to drink liquid nitrogen, and now we have another news item demonstrating something we thought everyone knew: don’t eat so many live insects that you die. Edward “Barry” Archbold has died after winning a bug-eating contest at Ben Siegel Reptiles in Deerfield Beach, Florida. He won a python for his feat of reportedly eating 30 cockroaches, 100 millipedes, and 30 “super-worms”, a variety of bug commonly fried and eaten in many countries we don’t ever want to visit.
The 32-year-old Florida man unfortunately collapsed outside of the store shortly after beating 29 other contestants to win a python. (That was the weirdest sentence I’ve ever typed.) Store owner Ben Siegel, who says all the bugs were bred in captivity in sterile conditions, called 911. Archbold was pronounced dead at the hospital. An autopsy has been conducted, but the results aren’t in. It’s possible the natural toxicity of 100 millipedes could have been the cause. It’s also possible that Archibald had an allergic reaction to cockroach exoskeletons. (If someone is allergic to shellfish, they may also be allergic to cockroaches, but we don’t recommend finding out.) And it’s also possible the cause of death was unrelated to the bug-eating contest.
Whatever the cause, here is one of the final things Archbold put on his Facebook page:
“Defining moment” indeed. And here’s the final picture he posted on Facebook, which was a bucket of the super-worms he was eating.
There’s only one way to react to news this horrible and depressing: GIFS.
[Sources: Buzzfeed, The Smoking Gun, Sun-Sentinel, Arbroath, Gingerhaze]