French boy, 5, dies after being stung by jellyfish off Pha-ngan

– Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community

PHUKET: Koh Pha-ngan authorities have warned people to beware of box jellyfish after a |five-year-old French boy died on Saturday after being stung while swimming at a beach of this resort island off Surat Thani province.

The French boy, who was on vacation with his parents, was rushed to Koh Pha-ngan Hospital but succumbed to the venom.

Phuketwan website reported that Pha-ngan acting district chief Kasitdet Thongchu asked local administrative authorities and beachside hotels on Monday to post signs warning of poisonous jellyfish and prepare first aid measures in case of stings.

Dr Yongyos Thammawut of the provincial public health office in Surat Thani said the boy went into shock from stings from the poisonous tentacles of a box jellyfish while with his parents on Khuad beach on Saturday.

He died as his parents and a guide were taking him to Pha-ngan Hospital for treatment.

The site said the boy became entangled in the box jellyfish’s tentacles, which were 20cm long. Fully-grown box jellyfish, some of the most poisonous animals on earth, can reach three metres.

They can be found seasonally off the beaches of Koh Lanta and Haad Nopparatthara-Mu Ko Phi Phi National Marine Park of Krabi province, Nam Bor Bay in Phuket, Cha-am beach in Phetchaburi, and some beaches on Tao, Samui and Pha-ngan islands.

— Phuket Gazette Editors