Chinese tourist stung by Australian box jellyfish near Koh Samet

A local tourist board representative said that a 27 year old Chinese tourist was stung by an Australian species of box jellyfish on Tuesday.

But he said that the response to the emergency showed that training conducted for local staff was paying off, reports Thairath.

Mr Yang Yang was stung as he was swimming off the beach at Koh Talu off the Rayong coastline.

He was treated at the Koh Samet International Clinic in Ban Phe but was out of danger. He had wounds on his hand, his calf and both feet but survived the sting that can prove fatal in some circumstances.

Phitsanu Kkemaphan of the Koh Samet tourist board said that Australian box jellyfish were rare in these parts and were usually found in deep waters, not at beaches.

He said that he thought the arrival of this jellyfish was probably down to global warming and changing currents.

He put a good spin on the incident saying that training recently conducted for the Samet clinic staff by several hospitals on the eastern seaboard had shown their readiness to deal with this particular type of emergency.

This could only add to the good image of the Samet area, he said.

Thai Visa / Thairath

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