Reporter hospitalised after painful run-in with crab live on air

An Australian news station has received backlash amid one of its reporters being hospitalised after she kissed a crab live on air.

Last Friday (April 3), Today Show weather presenter Taylor Haynes headed to the Sydney Fish Market in Glebe to discuss what fishy delicacies would be available for purchase ahead of the Easter weekend.

A local fishmonger retrieved a giant crab from one of the tanks and handed it to the broadcaster to hold.

“Oh my god, it’s suffocating my hand right now,” she proclaimed in an interview clip which has been shared on The Today Show’s social media.

“That’s huge! We’re not mucking around,” Haynes said before being asked if she could give the mammoth crustacean ‘a kiss’.

After complying with the request, the journalist revealed that the crab had clamped down on her finger and asked for the live footage to be cut.

Haynes later returned to the screen with her fingers in what appeared to be a cup of iced water.

“At the start…everyone here was making a joke out of it but the crab got my finger,” she explained before the fishmonger admitted he had to get a ‘big metal bar’ to pry the crab off of her.

“I will be going to hospital after this,” Haynes continued. “The pain is real. I’ve got no movement. It’s awful.”

In an Instagram post posted after the incident, the weather reporter confirmed that her finger was not broken, ‘just very bruised and swollen’.

“Ouch. I watched it again and her hand just slid further up towards the bottom nipper. And then bam!!! King crab could easily break your finger,” responded a viewer.

A second said: “Poor girl. Most likely has broken her little finger. Only a defence mechanism from the crab.”

Many social media users used the opportunity to share their appreciation for Haynes following her crustacean concern.

“TAY!! What a soldier and so composed. Sending you love and a quick recovery,” said one Instagram user.

Dan Anstey, Triple M Breakfast in Brisbane host, commented: “The crustacean intimidation of the weather fraternity must be stopped. In solidarity I will be eating a crab curry on-air tomorrow morning.”

“She is amazing. So composed,” replied someone else.

Others have used the opportunity to call out The Today Show, with one critic claiming the programme should ‘advocate for animals to not be eaten and be left to live their lives free in their natural environments’.

“The Today Show needs to read the room and the comments, their viewers have compassion for animals and didn't like seeing these poor vulnerable animals in confinement and in danger from cruel greedy people,” they claimed.

Another responded: “There is nothing amusing about this segment.”

“I’d love to hear @emma.hurst share her thoughts on the TV network doing something that appears to trivialise or exploit a wild animal on national TV, especially after it clearly resisted capture,” said a third, referring to Animal Justice Party MP Emma Hurst.

“While you’re treating it as a bit of fun, a 30 year old crab that was clearly terrified and fought for its life when mishandled by this woman doesn’t feel like light hearted entertainment to many of us. I hope that in the not too distant future we look back on this moment with contempt, not laughs,” they added.

Following the crab-crushing incident, Haynes has featured in another video where it was claimed she was enacting her ‘revenge’ by posing beside a plate of cooked crab.

FOODbible has contacted The Today Show and 9Network for comment.