Swedish Girl Killed By Jellyfish Sting

[phuketrex]

Swedish girl dies from jellyfish sting

Published: 3 Apr 08 11:53 CET

A Swedish girl died on Thursday morning in a swimming accident on the tourist island of Koh Lanta in Thailand.

The girl went into anaphylactic shock--a severe allergic reaction--after being stung by a jellyfish,” said a nurse to the Aftonbladet newspaper.

The 10-year-old girl was swimming in the waters off of Klong Dao Beach when she was stung by the jellyfish.

She suffered a quick, hypersensitive reaction and was taken to hospital where doctors worked for an hour and a half but couldn’t save the girl’s life.

Koh Lanta is a popular tourist destination for many Swedes.

TT/The Local

[phuketrex]

Sounds like the Box Jellyfish are the dangerous ones round here...described as possibly the most toxic creature on earth!>>>

Dangerous Jellyfish:

Box Jelly [Chironex fleckeri and 20 near relatives] is found off the shores of Northern Australia, PNG, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam. This marine animal has a boxy bell head the size of a basket ball and three metre tentacles that can kill a man in a couple of minutes, though there are recent reports of much smaller Box jellies that are just as deadly.

It has 3 million stinging cells every centimtre of its tentacles!

The Box jelly is responsible for at least one death a year around Australia and has killed 67 people since records began in 1883, though the total is misleading since many deaths attributed to heart attacks or drowning could have been caused by toxic jellies.

The Box Jellyfish is mostly a problem from October - May.

Symptoms:- severe pain

- headache, nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea

- skin swelling/wounds/redness

- difficulty breathing, swallowing and speech

- shivering, sweating

- irregular pulse/heart failure

This is what you are likely to look like if you get stung by one>>>

Stings treatment:

- pour vinegar over tentacles. Urine does not work on the Box Jelly or Irukandji.

- lift off any tentacles with a stick or similar.

- use pressure-immobilisation on limbs if possible. i.e. quickly wrap a light bandage above and below the sting [if you can't get two fingers under the bandage, it's too tight].

- Immobilize/splint the stung area and keep it at heart level [gravity-neutral] if possible. Too high causes venom to travel to the heart, too low causes more swelling.

- Do not drink alcohol, or take any medicine or food.

- get medical treatment urgently or apply antivenom if available.

[skippybangkok]

Does not mention it was a box jelly ( maybe she is hypersensitive ). My Mrs is sensitive to stuff in the water, and looked like she had a severe bout of Small Pox after a dive trip.

Box Jellies are not common around here, but i have know people to get hit by some with hospitalization as a result.

RIP & condolances to family , 10 years is very young indeed.

[Boo]

How very very sad. my condolences to the family.

[Fantasteak]

How very very sad. my condolences to the family.

I second that.

How does a family ever come to terms with something like that happening? . Life can be so cruel.

[burman]

Yep, some things just don't seem right do they. You know it's a shitty world full of tragic accidents, but a ten year old girl, killed by a jellyfish whilst swimming, it's just not fair is it. The family have to live with that forever now, what a bloody shame.

Condolences to the family.

[stingertale]

While box jellyfish are not common in Thailand waters they do exist and are an ever present danger. My 4 year old son was stung by a box jellyfish on Ko Mak in December 2007. His breathing and heart stopped. After a few minutes he came back to life - no-one is sure why seeing he had received such massive envenomation. He was lucky. Anaphylactic shock is not uncommon and allergic reactions to bees and peanuts and a heap of other things are not as rare as many people think. I understand that allergic reactions of this nature to a box jellyfish sting is not a surprising occurrence. Some experts in Australia believe the problem in Thailand is only going to get worse - more pollution and nutrients in the warmer/warming water increases food for box jellyfish that increases box jellyfish survival and numbers (3 month life span of 1 jellyfish produces up to 1,000,000 offspring - each mature jelly carries enough toxin to kill 60 people - scary horror movie stuff in one respect but the facts tell the story). As more tourists venture futher afield in search of that peaceful, untouristed paradise they could inadvertantly be heading straight into box jellyfish territory. This is a sad situation and I really feel for the family, friends and all who are associated with this poor young girl.

[Daffy D]

My wife heard about this from her friend on Koh Lanta not exactly sure how it happened apparently the girl was floating on one of those air mattresses at the time. Very sad.

These jellyfish are huge about 2ft in diameter. On visits to Lanta I have seen them swimming from the ferry and also dead ones while walking on the beach. Always made me wary of swimming there as a mouthful of that doesn’t bare thinking about.

“stingertale” I feel for you, impossible to imagine your the anguish at the time.

[mr_lob]

Quite shocking - very rare here in Krabi. Poor girl.

[jonniebkk]

These jellyfish are huge about 2ft in diameter. On visits to Lanta I have seen them swimming from the ferry and also dead ones while walking on the beach. Always made me wary of swimming there as a mouthful of that doesn’t bare thinking about.

Box "jellyfish" vary in size, with some being very small, and mostly translucent. The tentacles, however, may be 2-3 meters in length. This makes it very hard, almost impossible, to see while in the water. They are common in many areas of Australia during certain times of the year, but are found in varying degrees in all tropical seas. Many of them are extremely dangerous but are not often seen while engaging in water sports until one has been stung.

I had a diver friend whose sister was stung by a box jelly while diving of Ko Samui. She lived but has permanent scarifications on her legs.

Here is Wikipedia's description of them:

Box jellyfish are invertebrates belonging to the class Cubozoa, named for their cube-shaped medusae. Contrary to their name, box jellyfish are not actually jellyfish at all; the Cubozoans are a separate category of animal from true jellyfish; Scyphozoans. Likewise, the best-known species of Box Jellyfish, Chironex fleckeri, while sometimes simply called "the Box Jellyfish", is only one species of the category which actually contains about 19 different species. The name sea wasp is also applied to some species of cubozoans, including the afterforementioned Chironex fleckeri and Carybdea alata. Box jellies can be found in Australia, the Philippines, Hawaii[1], Vietnam, and many other tropical areas. They are also found in Perth W.A. Box jellyfish are extremely venomous and can kill.

Box Jellyfish are best known for the extremely powerful venom possessed by some of their species. The Chironex fleckeri and the Carukia barnesi (Irukandji) species are amongst the most venomous creatures in the world. Stings from such species are excrutiatingly painful, either initially or as an after-effect, and are often fatal. However not all species of Box Jellyfish are this dangerous to humans.

Edited April 6, 2008 by jonniebkk

[whimsy]

Very unfortunate. My condolences to the family.

For those wanting to reduce the risk of a jellyfish sting .......

(Wikipedia). Pantyhose, or tights, were once worn by Australian lifeguards to prevent stings. These have now been replaced by lycra stinger suits.

[jonniebkk]

For those wanting to reduce the risk of a jellyfish sting .......

(Wikipedia). Pantyhose, or tights, were once worn by Australian lifeguards to prevent stings. These have now been replaced by lycra stinger suits.

Oh...I thought that was a picture of those new Muslim lady lifeguard swimsuits I see where I was wrong, the faces are still visible!

[donna]

what a sad story. you dont expect to be going home one less from a family vacation hey.

my sincere condolences to the family.

[Old Croc]

Here is Wikipedia's description of them:

Box jellyfish are invertebrates belonging to the class Cubozoa, named for their cube-shaped medusae. Contrary to their name, box jellyfish are not actually jellyfish at all; the Cubozoans are a separate category of animal from true jellyfish; Scyphozoans. Likewise, the best-known species of Box Jellyfish, Chironex fleckeri, while sometimes simply called "the Box Jellyfish", is only one species of the category which actually contains about 19 different species. The name sea wasp is also applied to some species of cubozoans, including the afterforementioned Chironex fleckeri and Carybdea alata. Box jellies can be found in Australia, the Philippines, Hawaii[1], Vietnam, and many other tropical areas. They are also found in Perth W.A. Box jellyfish are extremely venomous and can kill.

I guess Wikipedia is not the all knowing guide many think.

The deadly, venemous Box Jellies are not found in Perth. They are a tropical (warm water) species and only found in far northern WA, the Northern Territory and Queensland.

There are occasional plagues of Bluebottle jellies on Perth beaches, and their stings can be painful, but not fatal.

[Scott]

My deepest sympathies to the family on their loss.

[RY12]

Very unfortunate. My condolences to the family.

For those wanting to reduce the risk of a jellyfish sting .......

(Wikipedia). Pantyhose, or tights, were once worn by Australian lifeguards to prevent stings. These have now been replaced by lycra stinger suits.

They can still sting u in the face can't they? i wouldn't send a kid out in the water if the face was still vulnerable. i don't see a solution unless you wore a ski mask with goggles... seems uncomfortable

[huggybear]

Very unfortunate. My condolences to the family.

For those wanting to reduce the risk of a jellyfish sting .......

(Wikipedia). Pantyhose, or tights, were once worn by Australian lifeguards to prevent stings. These have now been replaced by lycra stinger suits.

They can still sting u in the face can't they? i wouldn't send a kid out in the water if the face was still vulnerable. i don't see a solution unless you wore a ski mask with goggles... seems uncomfortable

odds and probabilities say you are more apt to die from bee stings than a jelly fish sting.

Just bad luck..............condolences to the family.

[Daffy D]

Seems one (yes only one) of the resorts has put notices on the beach warning of jellyfish.

Apparently the beach is like that scene from jaws where all the people are on the beach but non in the water.

[donna]

when i was in melbourne we had a swarm of small red jellyfish in the bay. a work colleague went swimming one evening and was blinded for three days by the little buggers. im not sure if she realised that they were there or not at the time. their stingers are invisible so very hard to know if they are in the water or not.

i went into the sea at the same time and came out with lots of red welts. not as bad as some people i have sen though.

[Daffy D]

Slightly off topic. There was an episode of “Sea Patrol” (new series about Australian navy patrol ship) where one of the crew got stung by tiny jellyfish, I believe the term was size of a pin, and nearly died. Do such small jellyfish exist?

[Gary A]

On a dive trip to the Great Barrier reef, I had some VERY heated words with the dive boat captain. He was simply an asshol_e. I wore a dive skin but most of the other divers didn't. Jellyfish are normally only a problem on the surface. A diver normally has his head out of the water and can raise his hands out of the water if there is a threat. I passed through a group of jellyfish and didn't get stung. Unfortunately some of the divers DID get stung. There were jellyfish around the boarding ladder. The captain could have moved the boat or flushed them out of the way with the salt water fire pump. I suggested both. He did neither. He yelled at the people who got stung and told them that they were NOT going to die. One young girl was really hurting and scared and all he could do was call her a baby. I really would have liked to have pushed him into the water in the middle of the jellyfish. Luckily no one suffered any allergic reactions.

[keestha]

Wherever I go swimming, I first walk up and down a bit to check the beach for jellyfish. Jellyfish prefer the somewhat cooler water, so they tend to stay a bit down, but after it has been raining they go right up to the surface. If there are shrimpfarms in the area, the number of jellyfish tends to increase after a shrimpfarm has discarded its wastewater into the sea. There is still shrimpfood in it, which is also excellent food for jellyfish.

[NBT TV Phuket]

Krabi authority warns swimmers of jelly fish after storms.

As the rainy season is approaching with thunder storms usually in the afternoon, Krabi authority warns swimmers to keep away from jelly fish as they can be very harmful. The Krabi Deputy Governor Thanwa Khemasiri explained that the jelly fish are usually found after rain storms on the coast or in deep sea. They look like blobs when washed up on the beach. But in the water the jellyfish are quite graceful. According to scientific information, when the tentacles brush against prey (or, say, a person's leg), thousands of tiny stinging cells explode, launching barbed stingers and poison into the victim. In humans, the poison usually causes a sharp, burning sensation that may last from minutes to hours. So swimmers are advised to be careful around jellies washed up on the sand. Some still sting if their tentacles are wet. If you are stung, wash the wound with vinegar or rubbing alcohol. Don't rinse with water, which could release more poison. Also of course beware during thunderstorms of lightning which can be dangerous if it strikes people in water of the ocean or swimming pools.

from Andaman News NBT (VHF dial) at 8.30am & local Cable TV channel 1 + maybe FM90.5 Radio Thailand 6pm, broadcast to Phang Nga, Krabi & Phuket provinces, & possibly FM108 Mazz Radio 7.30pm in Phuket, Wednesday 23 April 2008 & http://news.prd.go.th or http://thainews.prd.go.th/newsenglish

[Daffy D]

To answer my own earlier question, there was a program on one of the educational channels all about jellyfish. There are tiny jellyfish a couple of cm in diameter that give a little sting that you think nothing of at the time but the reaction sets in later and yes it can kill.

These tiny killers used to be only round the Great Barrier Reef but now can be found all over including the British Isles.

Apparently the jellyfish population is exploding all over the globe and are a becoming serious problem.

Trouble is if you’re in the water you can hardly see the buggers, come back Jaws at least we could see you.

[huggybear]

Swedish girl dies from jellyfish sting

Published: 3 Apr 08 11:53 CET

A Swedish girl died on Thursday morning in a swimming accident on the tourist island of Koh Lanta in Thailand.

The girl went into anaphylactic shock--a severe allergic reaction--after being stung by a jellyfish," said a nurse to the Aftonbladet newspaper.

The 10-year-old girl was swimming in the waters off of Klong Dao Beach when she was stung by the jellyfish.

She suffered a quick, hypersensitive reaction and was taken to hospital where doctors worked for an hour and a half but couldn't save the girl's life.

Koh Lanta is a popular tourist destination for many Swedes.

TT/The Local

I was in Krabi at the Gastropod Fossil area low season last year and went down to the beach below for a quick swim.

My mistake as the river mouth is not so far away (dirty water) and when I stepped into the water I felt jelly fish stingers all over my feet and ankles. Jumped out, and since no one was around, urinated on my feet (I know....., disgusting). But it did make the stinging subside and later I was just left with some red welts, pretty minor.

[jmricca]

No need to go into paranoia, but with the number of cases reported over the past months, including this 4 yr old boy in Koh Mak (http://www.ssbkk.com/vb/showthread.php?t=1063), I decided to share my own. What follows may be a case of bad luck (wrong place, wrong time), but must be taken seriously as it happened in a familiar and usually crowed place.

I also had a painful experience with a box JF 3 months ago. The deep scars (pixs available) from the subsequent necrosis are not yet healed !

the scary piece is that it happens in less than 3ft of water directly in front of Marriott Hua Hin.... it was about 5pm and I was playing with my kids in the waves. The thing was simply pushed to me by the surf and luckily, as my wife gave me a warning, it ended on on right forearm. Pain on impact was not that big, but the sight of the beast (about 30cm in diameter) pushed everybody out of the water. Frankly, i did not paid much attention to it as being stung in Thailand is pretty frequent and this was not much different from the others. But.... 2 hours later, I fainted, not due to the pain but the deep impact of the venom. Medical attention followed and betamethasone made wonder in calming the pain which during the night was very severe.

All this to say that 3 weeks later, the skin was in full necrosis mode and now 3 months later, only part has recovered. I believe it will take another month for full recovery but left with unmistakable scars on the forearm.

In my case, what has mitigated the initial short term impact is my long term allergy treatment as I take anthistamines and cortisone on a daily basis. For a big guy like me (185, 75kgs), I am a bit scared of what could have happened without this systemic treatment....

The big takehome message here is to say "yes, they are box JF in TH, they are dangerous, and yes, even in 5* resorts and 30cm of water, you can be in trouble".

When we scouted and combed the beach the following morning, there were about half a dozen of them shored overnight in between the Marriott and the Sofitel.

jm

[BigBikeBKK]

Fascinating- that last post is so similar to what happened to me about 6 weeks ago while surfing at Laem Mae Pim beach near Rayong.

I was standing in shallow murky water, perhaps 4-5 feet deep. Felt something brush my leg, which I first thought was trash- there's a lot of crap in the water these days... Then I felt the sting. Unfortunately I never saw what stung me.

I've been stung before in Japan and Hawaii and Phuket, but this one was different- the pain more intense, but oddly more localized.

Rather than a long welt which is what I usually get from the tentacles of a jelly, this sting left a short 3-4 inch long half inch wide "wound". Usually it takes a while for the sting to become visible, but this one became red and extremely painful almost immediately.

I got stung on the middle of my calf. I didn't have any vinegar on hand so I did the only thing I could which was a nice warm "golden shower". I'm not sure any of the locals saw me pissing on myself, and quite frankly I was in so much pain at the time that I didn't give a fok.

So anyway- I didn't think more of it, as I'd never heard that there were any dangerous jellies in Thailand.

The pain was bearable so I kept surfing and went home.

But the wound wouldn't heal. Itchy and oozing, and discolored around the edges it was not a pretty sight. No pain- in fact other than the itching most of my calf was completely numb.

I swam a lot in our pool, thinking that the chlorine might help keep the wound clean- don't know if there's any merit to that belief...

I waited about a week and things seemed to be getting worse, so I went to Samitivej hospital in Bangkok. I've always believed Samitivej to be one of the better hospitals in Thailand.

I told them I thought I was stung by a jellyfish. The nurse thought it was so funny and taught me how to say jellyfish in Thai: "Mangaprune" (My spelling could be WAY off)

They cleaned up the wound, told me it was infected (necrosis), gave me antibiotics, iodine and antibiotic cream and told me I should be better in a week or so.

Well, I kept the wound clean, ate all my meds, and after a week passed it was still a nasty oozing mess.

Went to a local clinic near my house to get it cleaned again, and the doc put me on another round of antibiotics, and now, finally, about 6 weeks after I was stung, the wound is dry, but still ugly- I'll have a pretty weird looking scar and there's still a lot of discoloration around the wound.

Anyway- I'm still not 100% sure what stung me. It had to be some kind of jellyfish, and I've done a lot of reading about jellyfish since this whole thing started.

Apparently there are many varieties of box jellyfish, some more deadly than others. If I had to guess I'd say I was stung by some kind of box jellyfish. Could even have been a piece of a dead one as I did see some washed up on the shore.

Moral of the story- add some vinegar to your first aid kit! If you are stung, don't expect Thai doctors to know much about treating jellyfish stings. I'm not dissing Thai docs, I just think it's something they probably almost never have to deal with.

And hey... maybe that's why all the locals swim in jeans and T-shirts... Hmmm...

Surf's Up!

[huggybear]

And hey... maybe that's why all the locals swim in jeans and T-shirts... Hmmm...

Surf's Up!

Great observation ! I guess I'll start paddling out in my levi's !

[klikster]

These jellyfish are huge about 2ft in diameter.

The tiny ones can kill as well. Search "Irigandji"

And my condolences to the family of the young lady who died. So sad.

[thaiman]

here is one in khao lak about a year ago. the water bottle is 1 liter