Killer jellyfish “unknown in Phuket’

SURAT THANI: A biologist said today that a killer jellyfish blamed for the deaths of two tourists in separate attacks near Koh Samui had never been seen in Phuket’s waters. Supot Chantrapornsyl, Marine Biologist at Phuket’s Marine Biological Center, told the Gazette that the “Portuguese Man of War” which was found in local waters could sting painfully and inflame the skin, but was most unlikely to kill. Australian Sean Tyrrell, 25, was dead on arrival at Baan Don International hospital after he received massive stinging to his legs while swimming at Hat Rin beach, Koh Pha-ngan, on August 9. Officials said that Tyrrell suffered terrible pain from the stings, which left large welts. “The long tentacles wrapped around his legs three or four times each. It would have been a painful death,” an official told The Nation newspaper. The Nation quoted officials and the hospital spokesman as saying they did not know what species of jellyfish caused it. Two days after the Australian’s death a Moroccan woman was also killed. She died in a hospital on nearby Koh Samui after being stung, also while swimming at Koh Pha-ngan.