About 500 students and teachers were evacuated from a university in Melbourne, Australia, after a smell of gas was reported in a library on Saturday, April 28.

According to The Sydney Morning Herald, about 40 firefighters were called to the RMIT campus just after 3pm.

As the building was known to store potentially hazardous chemicals, an investigation was launched to determine the source of the smell as a precaution.

After combing through the building, the smell was traced to a durian, which had been left rotting in a cupboard.

Rotten afternoon on campus

A statement released later by Melbourne's Metropolitan Fire Brigade, titled "Rotten afternoon on campus", said the smell had moved around the building through the air-conditioning system.

The building was reopened by 6pm.

It is unknown why someone left a durian inside the cupboard in the first place.

Durians banned from Singapore's public transport

Durians, with its prickly exterior but soft interior, is dubbed the "King of fruits".

It is also known as a deeply polarising fruit.

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Many in Southeast Asia love it for its creamy, sweet interior.

But its smell has often been likened to rotten eggs or garbage.

Durians are banned from Singapore's public transport and many good hotels due to the pungent odour that can linger for hours on end.

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