March 2002

Vol. 17, No. 3     What's this?

Jelly Fish Death

from the March, 2002 issue of Undercurrent  

A British tourist died after being stung by a jellyfish off Hamilton Island in northern Australia in February. The 58-year-old man suffered a brain hemorrhage after he came into contact with the tiny but highly toxic Irukandji jellyfish. The death is the first confirmed case in Australia. The Irukandji is the size of a peanut and barely visible to the human eye.

Scores of people are stung by the jellyfish in northern Australia every year. The effects usually include increased heart rate and blood pressure. Other symptoms include backache, muscle pains, chest and abdominal pains, headache, nausea, vomiting and sweating. There have been cases reported where the symptoms were mistaken for the bends, and treated improperly with recompression.

---Ben Davison