Woman forced to drop pants on New York subway train after giant RAT runs up her trouser leg

A woman was forced to drop her trousers in the middle of a packed rush hour subway train when a rat ran up her trouser leg.

Ana Vargas, 40, was sitting in the train at 7.50am as it approached New York's Columbus Circle station when the terrifying rodent suddenly crawled up her leg.

The hotel supervisor said she initially thought it was her trousers moving until she realised she was being attacked.

Subway horror: Ana Vargas gestures the approximate size of the rat that forced her to drop her pants on a downtown A train at Columbus Circle

Terrifying: A woman was forced to drop her trousers in the middle of a packed rush hour subway train when a rat ran up her trouser leg

Despite violently shaking her trousers, the large rodent still didn't drop out.

'I said, "Oh, my God - it’s an animal on my leg"' , she told New York Daily News.

'I was shaking, but nothing was coming out . . . I had to pull my pants down in front of everyone on the train.'

Thankfully, Mrs Vargas' blushes were saved when three men tried to shield her from flashing people in the carriage.

Freaky: Ana Vargas was sitting in the train at 7:50am as it approached New York's Columbus Circle station, pictured, when the rodent suddenly crawled up her leg

'I grabbed his head, because he was scratching me, she said. 'I didn’t want it to bite.'

As the train stopped, Mrs Vargas - who works at the Doubletree by Hilton Hotel - dropped the rat and ran for help in a state of shock.

She describes being extremely nervous and was shaking and shivering following the incident on Friday.

Police officers were called to the scene along with paramedics who took her to the Roosevelt Hospital.

She was treated by doctors for scratches to her thigh and leg. She also described feeling a burning sensation.

Mrs Vargas was given a Tetanus shot before being released from the hospital.

The rat could not be found after the incident, which has left Mrs Vargas traumatised and fearful about using the subway to get to work every day.

Following the rat attack, extra inspections have been carried out on the subway network.

The MTA - which manages the subways - said it regularly cleaned subway cars and platforms which could attract rodents.

The agency also said passengers can help by not eating food in the subways and throwing litter in rubbish bins.

Trauma: The rat could not be found after the incident, which has left Mrs Vargas fearful about using the subway to get to work every day

RAT CITY: RODENTS RUNNING AMOK IN NEW YORK

Any New Yorker will tell you that rodents are a common sight in the city that never sleeps.
While New York City rats may vary in colour and size, they're all one species - the Norway rat, according to the city's health department.

However, larger-than-usual rats have been discovered in the city, pictured in images that spread like wildfire on the internet.
In January, a photo making the rounds on Twitter showed a massive, 3-foot-long rat that was allegedly caught at a Foot Locker in the Bronx.
Several months earlier, another huge rat was stabbed to death with a pitchfork by a city housing authority worker in Brooklyn.
Experts say those creatures could only be Gambian pouched rats, which can grow to up to an astonishing three feet long.
Last year, a YouTube video showing a rat causing panic on a subway train – and even crawling up a man's leg to his face - became an internet sensation.
While rats will often leave people alone when lurking in subway stations, bites have been known to occur.
Dozens of rat bite incidents are reported each year in Manhattan, and they are not to be taken lightly

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2157561/Woman-forced-drop-pants-New-York-subway-giant-RAT-runs-trouser-leg.html#ixzz1xa1ZpNoT