While many North Americans were braving the post-Christmas crush of deal-seeking shoppers, mall-goers in China dealt with a much more dangerous -- albeit, unlikely -- threat: sharks.
Fifteen people were injured on the first floor of Shanghai's Orient Shopping Center, after a 33.5-ton aquarium containing sharks suddenly burst, local media reported. Among the injured were customers, shop assistants and security staff. Three of the sharks, which were around 12 to 15 inches long, died. Video footage of the incident, above, is spreading online after being posted on YouTube in the past few days.
The aquarium was made of acrylic glass, according to Chen Yongping, an official with the center's management.
In June, two sharks in the tank died after a water pipe broke.
"We will not build an aquarium again in the future," Chen said.