Swedish Tourist Narrowly Avoids Death From Box Jellyfish Sting

[george]

Swedish tourist narrowly avoids death from box jellyfish sting

KOH MAK: -- A Swedish media outlet is reporting that a nine-year-old girl had a narrow escape with death after being wrapped in the tentacles of a deadly box jellyfish off the island of Koh Mak last week.

Considered a reliable publication Aftonbladet.se, says a Swedish family, Jenny Rosenberg, 36, her husband Frederick, 35, and their daughter Ida were in the waters off Koh Mak when the parents heard their daughter, who was in the shallows, scream in pain.

When they reached the shore, Ida was already unconscious and a Swedish fire-fighter, Anders Brunzell, was administering CPR.

According to Aftonbladet, Mr. Brunzell said ''I and my family were sunbathing a bit away. We ran to Ida and saw that her right leg was completely covered with long threads, like glass noodles.''

The fellow Swedes then proceeded to rip the tentacles off the young girl, began CPR and asked staff at the nearby hotel to get vinegar – the only effective treatment for arresting the spread of the box jellyfish's lethal toxin.

The victim was taken by boat to the mainland, where an ambulance was waiting to take her to a hospital in Trat.

The newspapers says the young girl has now regained consciousness, though she is reported to be badly scared and the doctors are concerned she may have brain damage due to the period of time she was unconscious.

The victims family has slammed tourism officials and the hotel for failing to post warning signs of the possibly of box jellyfish in the area, saying the day after their daughter was injured, people were swimming in he same location.

Southern Thailand tourism operators have been reluctant to post signs warning of the deadly sea creatures, fearing it will damage the tourism trade.

When the family of the last known fatal box jellyfish victim in Thailand, also a Swedish girl, attempted to put warning signs up following her death on Koh Lanta in Krabi in 2008, local tourism operators promptly tore them down.

-- thaivisa.com 2010-03-08

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[metisdead]

The victims family has slammed tourism officials and the hotel for failing to post warning signs of the possibly of box jellyfish in the area, saying the day after their daughter was injured, people were swimming in he same location.

Southern Thailand tourism operators have been reluctant to post signs warning of the deadly sea creatures, fearing it will damage the tourism trade.

When the family of the last known fatal box jellyfish victim in Thailand, also a Swedish girl, attempted to put warning signs up following her death on Koh Lanta in Krabi in 2008, local tourism operators promptly tore them down.

This is a pretty damning statement of affairs, not caring for the safety of tourists or locals. Another case where money comes first, screw everything else. As this has already been reported in Sweden, the cat is out of the bag.

There was good first aid administered in this case, and I hope the young girl recuperates fully.

[Phil Conners]

TiT.

I hope it will receive prominent coverage in the European media.

[manarak]

The situation of people putting up warning signs because someone died and tourism operators then taking down the signs can seem saddening and angering, but according to stats I read some time ago, fatalities due to jellyfish attacks are extremely rare in Thailand.

I think to remember it is one every 3 or 4 years?

Things must be put in perspective - if I was a tourism operator I too would be displeased with business-damaging messages being displayed to people while the risk of a serious problem is almost zero.

It would be like putting signs warning about lethal danger on bretzels, since JW Bush almost choked to death on one...

So, condolences to the families of previous victims and best wishes of recovery to the swedish girl, but one has to bear in mind that nature has its dangers everywhere.

Edited March 8, 2010 by manarak

[Phil Conners]

^ I strongly disagree with you. You can't compare the risk on choking on foodstuff to the risk of encountering life threatening wildlife.

[AZBill]

Pretty damned irresponsible of the operators in Koh Mak. I definitely will not be going there and will discourage everyone I know from doing so. The love of the baht can go only so far and this really crosses the line. Hopefully these operators suffer the consequences of their deadly decisions and reprehensible behavior towards their foreign visitors.

[les Dennis]

Very tragic, and I wish the young girl a speedy recovery. Where would one draw the line on signage though?. You would have warnings about snakes, spiders, scorpions, monitor lizzards, rats, the list goes on. Perhaps maybe something highlighting that there has been sightings of box jellyfish and give year and season, but the other creatures I mentioned are there 24/7 all year round.

Edited March 8, 2010 by les Dennis

[nisakiman]

The situation of people putting up warning signs because someone died and tourism operators then taking down the signs can seem saddening and angering, but according to stats I read some time ago, fatalities due to jellyfish attacks are extremely rare in Thailand.

I think to remember it is one every 3 or 4 years?

Things must be put in perspective - if I was a tourism operator I too would be displeased with business-damaging messages being displayed to people while the risk of a serious problem is almost zero.

It would be like putting signs warning about lethal danger on bretzels, since JW Bush almost choked to death on one...

So, condolences to the families of previous victims and best wishes of recovery to the swedish girl, but one has to bear in mind that nature has its dangers everywhere.

I totally agree with manarak. Putting signs up warning of the dangers of box jellyfish would be completely disproportionate. If there is one fatality every 3 - 4 years, set against the number of swimmers in Thai waters over the same period, the risk factor is statistically so low as to be not worth consideration. It would be more relevant, statistically, to have big warning signs at the entrances to airports, saying

"Caution! This plane may fall out of the sky and kill you!" 

We all know that. It's a calculated risk every time we fly.

Same as we all (should) know that there are some not very nice things in the sea that can harm us. It's weighing risk against what we want to do. Alarmist warning signs aren't going to help anybody. Do you suggest, philconnors, that everybody should give up swimming in the sea because one unfortunate child got stung? Get real. If we all adopted your approach to life, nobody would do anything. Life would come to a standstill.

If I had a business on that beach, I'd be one of the first to tear down any misleadingly alarmist signs that threatened to destroy my livelihood. 

[TheLaughingMan]

The truth is Thailand is constantly covering up and hiding deaths/dangers because it will hurt their income. This is just one minor example of a huge problem.

[nisakiman]

The truth is Thailand is constantly covering up and hiding deaths/dangers because it will hurt their income. This is just one minor example of a huge problem.

So what do you propose? That the Thais tell everyone not to come to Thailand because there is a one in ten million chance that they may be fatally stung by a jellyfish?

How many foreign students have been raped / murdered in UK over the last 10 years? I can remember at least five. That would put the odds of getting raped / murdered in UK substantially higher than getting fatally stung by a jellyfish in Thailand. So what would you propose UK should do about that? Make all the university websites carry an "extreme danger" warning? No, better not - foreign students are a big earner for UK universities.

Yes, it's easy to say that the Thais are hiding deaths / dangers to protect their incomes. And I'm willing to bet that if your income was dependant on tourism, you'd have exactly the same attitude as the people who you sit in judgement on.

Life is full of risks, and if you're not prepared to deal with them in a rational way, then stay at home and wrap yourself in cotton wool. If people want to travel to exotic locations, then they must make the effort to educate themselves a little about their destination. That's not the responsibility of the locals. Particularly when the threat is so miniscule. 

[elcent]

thanks to the Swedes for sufficient help that has helped to safe a little girls life. Very impressive first aid. I'm pretty sure that most would not know of what to do in a situation like this.

[roiethome]

I guess the odds on this are about the same as a shark attack in Australian waters, bur do not remember any warning signs on Bondi beach last time I was there. After the recent attack on a woman who survived I am sure they were still swimming in same water. Come on, life is a risk, higher odds on being knocked down on a Bangkok road than being stung while swimming.

[aras]

yes i agree that tourist operators do not give a shit

but when you swin in the ocean/sea you know that there could be jelly fish/stig ray/sharks etc etc you can not prohibit them to swim around, that's why i hate to swin in open sea's or oceans becuse i am a scared chicken when it comes to these kinda animals.

I am not an expert on the subject so i don't know the details of how you could prevent these things. being a 9 year old i do feel sorry for her and her parents though

wish she'll be ok in a while

[brahmburgers]

Very unfortunate for the girl. Glad she's recovering. What an awful end for a vacation.

Do the box jellyfish have natural enemies? What do scientists know about their lifestyle/habits? Perhaps areas of the sea right up close to popular beaches have a boat that passes back and forth to screen out (with a net) the offending jellyfish. Such a boat would likely catch a lot of trash also.

[tonglen]

I totally agree with manarak. Putting signs up warning of the dangers of box jellyfish would be completely disproportionate. If there is one fatality every 3 - 4 years, set against the number of swimmers in Thai waters over the same period, the risk factor is statistically so low as to be not worth consideration. It would be more relevant, statistically, to have big warning signs at the entrances to airports, saying

"Caution! This plane may fall out of the sky and kill you!"

We all know that. It's a calculated risk every time we fly.

Same as we all (should) know that there are some not very nice things in the sea that can harm us. It's weighing risk against what we want to do. Alarmist warning signs aren't going to help anybody. Do you suggest, philconnors, that everybody should give up swimming in the sea because one unfortunate child got stung? Get real. If we all adopted your approach to life, nobody would do anything. Life would come to a standstill.

If I had a business on that beach, I'd be one of the first to tear down any misleadingly alarmist signs that threatened to destroy my livelihood.

I would like to preempt the following with one little caveat. I LOVE to swim, kayak, surf and dive. No, I am not hydrophobic.

Australian does this ALL THE TIME. They have signs warning people about the consequences of getting in the water. Whether it be crocs, sharks or marine stingers, thay have a sign for them. They don't hold back from warning the public. At that point the public is an INFORMED PUBLIC not an ignorant public. Also, the public then assumes all risk for getting into the water.

How about the undertows here? Do you think signs warning the public about that are 'alarmist?' Every year we see the signs and some idiot ignores it and they die. Then what happens on forums like these? We all say, "WHAT AN IDIOT. HE SHOULD HAVE READ THE SIGNS."

If there were no signs, it looks bad for Thailand.

The analogy you drew with the airplane is flawed.

Yes, flights crash all the time. Cars wreck all the time.No signs needed.

However, if the pilot had the proclivity to drink and fly, don't you think people would want to be warned? I would. At that point I would be INFORMED, not ignorant.

You then ask if everyone should give up swimming because of one unfortunate experience.

No, I dont think thats what philconnors was saying. Only those who dont want to be stung should not swim.

And, no life would NOT come to a "stand still" for everyone as you say. Again, only to those who do not want to be stung.

[voracious]

First, sympathies for the family. I hope the daughter heals up ok.

Second, one death in three or four years hardly seems to warrant signs. It seems to be lacking in compassion to not jump on the 'we must do something' bandwagon, but that's the kind of attitude that's lead to things like 'warning this coffee is hot' on every foam cup of coffee sold at McDonalds. Sometimes in life things happen and we don't *need* to do anything.

Far more people drown than die by jellyfish attacks. Should we then have signs at the beach stuck in the sand that "warning water! you may risk serious injury or even death by swimming or playing in these waters!"

As for killing the jellyfish... I respectfully disagree with that as well. The jellyfish are there first, and barring evidence of some kind of unnatural bloom in population it seems they should be left alone. We don't have a very good track record mucking about in ecosystems and eliminating one species or another.

As a diver, I feel for the child, but let's not let knee jerk reaction cause us to overreact.

Third and last, the notion that foreigners have some sort of right to place signs wherever they want... That's pretty arrogant, don't you think?

If a Japanese tourist drowned off Bondi Beach (just picking random examples) how do you think the locals would take to the family putting signs all over the beach warning that you can die swimming off Bondi Beach (substitute shark attack if you like).

If the family wants to convince the local authorities to put up official signs and want to help fund them or whatever, great, more power to them... but taking it in their own hands and expecting everyone just to let them do what they want is unrealistic.

Sorry if it sounds harsh.

[pwills]

In Australia we are used to box jellyfish and the anguish they can cause fortunately they only occur at certain times of the year and there are signs warning that they are around, they also give remedies , such as the use of vinegar to deaden the pain and aid the removal of the tentacles, also the recommended use of aqua suits during the box jellyfish period we have the life savers thank god who are also trained in the use of lifesaving techniques, hope the little girl recovers quickly and is not traumatised too badly and does not end up with scars from the broken tenticals. regards to all members

[jonclark]

Many condolences to the family and the yopung girl who will probably be scarred and disfigured for many years. A sad way to end their holiday.

I agree that there should be some information about the possibilities of injury from jellyfish, however remote as people need to make an informed decision as to whether they want to swim. If they don't there are many other activities to do. I remember at whitesands beach in koh Chang there are signs about dangerous under currents - Beach is always packed.

I'm sure many of the posters who say we don't need warnings, would be the first to complain if something unfortunate and preventable were to befall them or their children.

Tourism is a business and as far as i'm aware one of the key laws, which underpins business is that the customer is always right (even when you think they aren't). The customers here are farangs.

But TiT - a land where educationis seen as dangerous and an informed public is unwanted as they are harder to control.

[buckhumyai]

The Chironex fleckeri species of box jellyfish is known as being the most poisonous marine creature in the world. If in fact it was this particular species, which have been reported in Thailand previously, then I am amazed the poor girl survived. There is no doubt that the first aid given on the beach saved her life. Without someone trained in CPR she would have suffered cardiac arrest and more than likely died.

There is no excuse people, EVERYONE should know First Aid. The gentlemen on the beach who saved her life is a hero.

Warning signs are common place on the Northern beaches of Australia where these jellyfish can be found. If Thailand do not want to put up warning signs, the least they can do is make sure lifeguards trained in First Aid are patrolling every beach. . I personally think the negative press this will generate world wide is far more damaging to Thailand's reputation than erecting Warning signs. How many families will not make the trip to Thailand next high season after hearing about this?

[brahmburgers]

Suggest: one or more info plaques at each popular beach area. It could be a good-sized framed poster made to withstand the elements. Written in Thai and English, it would be full of easy-to-read / easy-to-understand information - in an educational format, with color photos.

It would mention potential hazards from wildlife and riptides and include the odds/ratio of being harmed. It would also have cautions about possible rip-offs from jet ski operators and other costly scams relating to the beach area. It could include mention of recent incidents. There could also be a bi-lingual guide on hand to assist with questions. The township could pay some young person 250 baht/day for that invaluable service.

Parents could go spend a couple minutes with their kids, read the poster, and talk with the guide. Note: don't hire a pretty girl as guide, as guys would be hitting up on her all day long.

[DP25]

Putting signs up singling out one business, of an extremely rare danger that can occur anywhere, is ridiculous. The owners of the resort could have been a bit more diplomatic though and left the signs up until the parents had at least left.

[stgrhe]

Actually, the Aftonbladet never said it was a box jellyfish, only a stinger they said. It is unlikely it was a box jellyfish because the Swedish fireman who gave the young girl CPR removed the tentacles with his bare hands and had it been a box jellyfish he would have gotten bad burns himself, which he didn't.

It is more likely to have been a Portuguese Man of War.

[Changian]

This is the second time in the past 2 years that a young child has almost died - heart stopped - due to a jellyfish attack on Koh Mak, the first was a 4 year old Australian boy. So I think it would be sensible to at least train resort staff as to what to do as the next child might not be so lucky.

After I put this story on my website a couple of days ago I had an email from the doctor at the Ministry of Public Health who in is charge of the Field Epidemiology Training Program in Thailand. So I think the govt, rather than the TAT, is interested in doing something to ensure people know what to do in the event of life threatening jellyfish stings.

[Gobbledoc]

I believe that the tenticals have little poison darts, and if can, drench them in vinegar or a product called "Stingoes" during you pull the tenticals off. When agitated they fire off more little tiny darts into the victim. Also the worse thing to do I have been told is to rub the area with sand. I am not expert in this though, just food for thought.

[ivowatson]

Actually, the Aftonbladet never said it was a box jellyfish, only a stinger they said. It is unlikely it was a box jellyfish because the Swedish fireman who gave the young girl CPR removed the tentacles with his bare hands and had it been a box jellyfish he would have gotten bad burns himself, which he didn't.

It is more likely to have been a Portuguese Man of War.

Thank you for clearing that up.

[stingertale]

Actually, the Aftonbladet never said it was a box jellyfish, only a stinger they said. It is unlikely it was a box jellyfish because the Swedish fireman who gave the young girl CPR removed the tentacles with his bare hands and had it been a box jellyfish he would have gotten bad burns himself, which he didn't.

It is more likely to have been a Portuguese Man of War.

Thank you for clearing that up.

This jellyfish was without any doubt a Chironex type box jellyfish as evidenced by the circumstances and the stings on the girl's legs being linear and whip-like (see Aftonbladet article). I have removed box jellyfish tentacles from a quivvering little leg before (at the same beach as this girl on Koh Mak 2 years ago) and I was OK - unfortunately though doing this shoots millions more stinging cells into the victim's body. The Swedish fireman is a hero and most definitely saved this girl's life with his quick thinking and calm approach to call for vinegar (right thing to do!) and apply CPR (ditto!).

Thailand's government is right onto this - hence the call from MoPH epidemiologists to a pervious poster. Surveillance and monitoring systems are being implemented as well as safety and awareness processes which involve education and signage (probably more subtle than in Australia). There are also other groups actively working towards making the beaches safer.

An earlier poster's comparison with calculated risks and flying is clearly rubbish as has been pointed out - with every flight we are taken through a safety process preparing us for that incredibly rare instance of the plane falling out of the sky. In South East Asia it is thought that around 200 are killed by box jellyfish every year. Around the world 4 or 5 are killed by sharks. No need to compare anything - a life is a life.

While also numbers of deaths are misleading with this problem because most survive a box jellyfish sting. But they experience incredible trauma as do their family, witnesses and of course those who are forced to save their life. It takes about 2m of tentacle to kill an adult (much less for a child increasing chances of more child fatalities) but even a few centimetres hurts like nothing else.

This blog provides information on box jellyfish in Thailand

http://thaiboxjellyfish.blogspot.com/

[tonglen]

First, sympathies for the family. I hope the daughter heals up ok.

Second, one death in three or four years hardly seems to warrant signs. It seems to be lacking in compassion to not jump on the 'we must do something' bandwagon, but that's the kind of attitude that's lead to things like 'warning this coffee is hot' on every foam cup of coffee sold at McDonalds. Sometimes in life things happen and we don't *need* to do anything.

Why do you dislike signs so much? Why not let the informed public decide?

Far more people drown than die by jellyfish attacks. Should we then have signs at the beach stuck in the sand that "warning water! you may risk serious injury or even death by swimming or playing in these waters!"

We DO have signs warning of undertows or riptides.....

As for killing the jellyfish... I respectfully disagree with that as well. The jellyfish are there first, and barring evidence of some kind of unnatural bloom in population it seems they should be left alone. We don't have a very good track record mucking about in ecosystems and eliminating one species or another.

I agree wholeheartedly

As a diver, I feel for the child, but let's not let knee jerk reaction cause us to overreact.

Third and last, the notion that foreigners have some sort of right to place signs wherever they want... That's pretty arrogant, don't you think?

I agree as well.

If a Japanese tourist drowned off Bondi Beach (just picking random examples) how do you think the locals would take to the family putting signs all over the beach warning that you can die swimming off Bondi Beach (substitute shark attack if you like).

If the family wants to convince the local authorities to put up official signs and want to help fund them or whatever, great, more power to them... but taking it in their own hands and expecting everyone just to let them do what they want is unrealistic.

I concur.

Sorry if it sounds harsh.

[voracious]

I was thinking some more about it and came back to re-read the thread and ran across the quoted post. That's quite reasonable, actually...if the Thais would be willing to do it. A multipurpose sign that outlines several of the hazards in a few strategic places.

If there aren't any lifeguard or first aid station, certainly it can be recommended to local operators to keep some vinegar handy as well as require that beach based police boxes keep a bottle or two

That would seem a pretty measured response.

Suggest: one or more info plaques at each popular beach area. It could be a good-sized framed poster made to withstand the elements. Written in Thai and English, it would be full of easy-to-read / easy-to-understand information - in an educational format, with color photos.

It would mention potential hazards from wildlife and riptides and include the odds/ratio of being harmed. It would also have cautions about possible rip-offs from jet ski operators and other costly scams relating to the beach area. It could include mention of recent incidents. There could also be a bi-lingual guide on hand to assist with questions. The township could pay some young person 250 baht/day for that invaluable service.

Parents could go spend a couple minutes with their kids, read the poster, and talk with the guide. Note: don't hire a pretty girl as guide, as guys would be hitting up on her all day long.

[ThaiEye]

Actually, the Aftonbladet never said it was a box jellyfish, only a stinger they said. It is unlikely it was a box jellyfish because the Swedish fireman who gave the young girl CPR removed the tentacles with his bare hands and had it been a box jellyfish he would have gotten bad burns himself, which he didn't.

It is more likely to have been a Portuguese Man of War.

Thank you for clearing that up.

An earlier poster's comparison with calculated risks and flying is clearly rubbish as has been pointed out - with every flight we are taken through a safety process preparing us for that incredibly rare instance of the plane falling out of the sky. In South East Asia it is thought that around 200 are killed by box jellyfish every year. Around the world 4 or 5 are killed by sharks. No need to compare anything - a life is a life.

Talk about making statistics up! 200 people die a year of jellyfish stings in SEA!!

You have far more chance of being attacked by a drunk Swede in a Koh Mak bar than you have of a jellyfish. So perhaps the bar owners there display warning signs about that!

[stingertale]

I sense a 'save the jellyfish' campaign coming on...please! Have a look at the biology, ecology and habitat of a box jellyfish and you'll soon realize that no matter what we do they are going to keep on coming - an adult box jellyfish has the reproductive potential to produce 1 - 1.5 million offspring in its 3-4 month life and they all love what we're doing to the sea with pollution and nutrification.

Suggesting that foreigners have a right to erect signs in Thailand is arrogant in itself - it is the Thai government and Thai tourism and hospitality authorities that are considering signage in Thailand. They will listen to foreigners requests, maybe, but that is that.

Indeed voracious that is a measured response and seems to be the sensible way to go. Have vinegar handy at the beach - a box jellyfish will kill in seconds or minutes - and have the barman or receptionist or whoever versed in some pretty basic knowledge ... hear scream, grab vinegar, call for help, apply vinegar to sting, perhaps provide lifesupport. In all likelihood it will not happen but what harm is there in being prepared?