Ebola plush toys fly off the shelf for Connecticut company
It may be the only time you will find these words in the same sentence: "Ebola" and "Add to Wishlist."
Giantmicrobes Inc., which makes a line of plush toys based on viruses and other microscopic organisms, has sold out its entire Ebola stock, including the small Ebola doll for $9.95, a Gigantic Ebola doll for $29.95 and an Ebola Petri Dish toy for $14.95, according to the company's website.
"Since its discovery in 1976, Ebola has become the T. Rex of microbes," says the Stamford, Connecticut-based maker of the "uniquely contagious toy" on its website, which promotes them as gag gifts that also have educational value.
With the latest Ebola outbreak, which already killed more than 4,500 people, mostly in West Africa, customers have snapped up the toy, which looks like half a pretzel.
"You do not want to get Ebola," warns the website. "A short incubation period of 2 to 21 days presages symptoms which include fever, aches, sore throat, and weakness, followed by diarrhea, stomach pain, vomiting, and both internal and external bleeding. And then, for between 50-90 percent of victims, death."
Giantmicrobes lists the World Health Organization as one of its largest customers, along with pharmaceutical companies and the American Red Cross.
Anyone disappointed by the current shortage of the Ebola toys can click on "Add to Wishlist" and wait for more stock to arrive. Or make a different selection from the company's array of other plush toys, including Anthrax, Botulism, Cholera and Dengue Fever.
It was not clear how many of the toys have been sold and the company could not be reached for comment.
埃博拉病毒造型毛絨玩具在美熱賣
這可能是你頭一次看到這兩個東西出現在同一個句子中：“埃博拉”和“加入意愿清單”。
根據Giantmicrobes公司網站介紹，埃博拉病毒造型毛絨玩具庫存已經全部售罄。這當中包括標價9.95美元的小埃博拉玩偶，29.95美元的巨大埃博拉玩偶以及14.95美元的埃博拉有蓋培養皿玩具。該公司曾出品過一系列的病毒造型和微生物造型玩偶、
這家位于美國康乃迪克州斯坦福德的微生物玩具公司在其網站上說，“自1976年，人類首次發現埃博拉病毒以來，埃博拉就成為了微生物界的暴龍。” 該公司稱這些惡作劇玩偶同樣具有教育意義。
近來爆發的埃博拉病毒疫情，已經導致超過4500人死亡，此次疫情主要發生在西非地區。這些長得像半個椒鹽脆餅的埃博拉病毒玩偶受到了熱捧。
該公司網站上警告說，“你絕不會想染上埃博拉”。埃博拉病毒的潛伏期短暫，從2天到21天不等，有發熱、疼痛、喉嚨酸痛和身體虛弱等癥狀，接著會出現腹瀉、胃痛、嘔吐和內外出血。有50%-90%的感染者會失去生命。
Giantmicrobes 把世界衛生組織列為其最大的買家，次之的是美國的醫藥公司和美國紅十字協會。
所有對目前埃博拉玩具短缺感到失望的顧客都可以點擊“加入意愿清單”按鈕，以等待新一批供貨上架。或者選擇該公司其他系列的毛絨玩具產品，包括炭疽病毒玩偶、肉毒桿菌玩偶、霍亂病毒玩偶和登革熱病毒玩偶。
對于這些玩偶的具體銷量還無從得知，該公司也未作聲明。
