Russian 10 year old survives stings from box jellyfish on Koh Samui
PHOTOS: Khaosod English
A ten year old boy has survived stings from a box jellyfish at Lamai Beach in Koh Samui. The box jellyfish is one of the most toxic creatures in the sea and is a real, if infrequent, danger floating around the Gulf of Thailand. It has the deadliest venoms of all marine invertebrates.
The Russian boy was reportedly stung by the box jellyfish around 8:30 on Wednesday morning while swimming at the popular Lamai Beach.
He was rushed to hospital by an emergency volunteer rescue Foundation, according to local tourism official Krissana Pornhomkoh. Khaosod English report that the boy was released from the hospital last night. Now Krissana is warning other tourists to be on the lookout for the creatures, a virtually impossible task given they float under the surface.
“Box jellyfish can be found on Koh Samui year-round, but are especially rampant from July through October.”
Eight people have been stung and injured by jellyfish on Koh Samui this year, which Krissana said was slightly less than most years.
An emergency responder commented in a news video during the rescue that the box jellyfish’s tentacles that stung the boy were short and small. Even separated from the main bowl-head of the jellyfish, the tentacles can inflict a severe of fatal sting. Several tourists have died from box jellyfish attacks on Thai beaches, including a German man back in 2015.
The jellyfish’s sting is reported to be so painful that victims are known to die of shock or heart failure even before reaching the shore. Marine officials have erected additional jellyfish nets and put up warning signs along Lamai Beach since July. Poles with vinegar for first aid are also placed at intervals throughout the beach.
If stung by a box jellyfish, as distinct from a (Bluebottle), “immediately get out of the water and rinse the area with vinegar for at least 30 seconds and gently remove the tentacles from the skin”.
“Call emergency services. On Koh Samui, dial 1669”.
Portuguese Man 0′ War jellyfish stings are more common along Thailand’s Andaman Coast but are rarely dangerous, although very painful. Box jellyfish are not know to frequent the Andaman coast. Jellyfish don’t ‘attack’ people, people simply swim unwittingly into their tentacles.
SOURCE: Khaosod English
