After a durian causes university evacuation, here are five other incidents with the pungent fruit

No other fruit is as loved (and hated) as the durian. Its odour has been likened to a mixture of turpentine and onions garnished with a gym sock, and its creamy texture is so beloved by fans, they will go to any length in their search for the best quality

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Love it or hate it, you can’t mistake the durian’s unique aroma. Photo: David Wong

Published: 4:31pm, 30 Apr 2018Updated: 5:59pm, 30 Apr 2018

It’s a tale to make your eyes water.

On Saturday, about 600 students and staff were evacuated from a university in Australia because of a pungent smell thought to be a gas leak. Specialist crews wearing masks searched the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology university campus library, except no leak was uncovered.

Instead the source of the stinging smell was found hiding in a cupboard … a rotting durian.

The tropical fruit beloved by many in Southeast Asia packs a punch, with its sweet and creamy flesh giving off a strong odour.

Food writer Richard Sterling once wrote: “Its odour is best described as pig-s***, turpentine and onions, garnished with a gym sock. It can be smelled from yards away.” The fruit is banned from public transport and hotel rooms in some Asian cities.

There are about 30 species of the “king of fruit”; however, not all are edible. The most prized species is Durio zibethinus, which can be the size of a watermelon and can cost up to US$30 a kilogram.