There are just some things you don’t expect to encounter on your daily subway commute, like, say, dozens of live eels.

Such was the case for Shanghai commuters on their way home from work after a rider dropped a bucket full of live swamp eels, spilling onto a subway car departing Shanghai Indoor Stadium. Eels being eels, they did what they could to wiggle their way to freedom, only to be met by passengers desperately trying to get out of the way.

Given Shanghai’s propensity for wet markets, and fresh seafood, the sight was probably nothing local passengers hadn’t seen before, however, perhaps the subway should be restricted to transporting passengers.

This is not an isolated case. According to Weibo, the Shanghai Metro has a tradition of sharing subway cars with buckets full of squirmy creatures. And for anyone wondering what happened to the eels, fear not. There were no reported subway delays, and presumably all parties made it to the dinner table on time.