Lifesavers are warning residents and visitors in the Northern Territory's Top End to take precautions against box jellyfish this dry season, after a child was stung at a popular Darwin beach yesterday.
The five-year-old boy was stung on his legs and stomach while swimming at Casuarina Beach, about 15 kilometres north of Darwin CBD.
He was rushed to Royal Darwin Hospital for treatment, but NT Health has confirmed he has since recovered and been discharged.
Widely considered one of the world's most venomous marine animals, box jellyfish are prevalent in Top End waters during the wet season.
However, they are rarely encountered in the dry season, which runs from May to October.
Surf Life Saving NT education manager Sam Edwards said while most box jellyfish moved out to sea at this time of year, typically some remained in local waters throughout the season.
"It is pretty rare for us to get box jellyfish stings inside the dry season. They do not like the cooler weather and the cooler water," he said.
"We do, however, experience normally a couple [of reports] every dry season.
"There are still box jellyfish that are present in the water — they're just in very low numbers."
Boy lucky to be alive
Mr Edwards said the five-year-old who was stung had been helped by two lifesavers in the area at the time, who poured vinegar on his wounds and called an ambulance.
He said the stings the boy received were severe, and he was lucky to be alive.
"It is a rare incident and unfortunately he did get stung. But because we had some off-duty lifesavers available and some vinegar to treat the box jellyfish tentacles … that's probably one of the better outcomes, that they were there," he said.
"If they don't have access to vinegar, it could have been a bit of a different story."
Mr Edwards said with box jellyfish still around in the dry season, there were steps people could take to protect themselves against serious stings.
Those include only swimming at locations patrolled by lifesavers, wearing protective clothing such as a rash vest, and having vinegar on hand to treat any stings.
"When someone is stung by a box jellyfish … the longer the tentacles are on the person's skin, the more venom they get delivered into the body," Mr Edwards said.
"So applying that vinegar as soon as possible, and getting off those tentacles quickly is really important.
"The longer the tentacles are left on there, the more venom that can enter the body."
