Deadly Irukandji warning for Gold Coast after stinger found off Fraser Island
WARMER weather could bring the deadly Irukandji jellyfish to Gold Coast shores after a stinger was found at Fraser Island on Sunday. Here’s what you need to know to stay safe at the beaches.
Beaches & Fishing
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DEADLY Irukandji jellyfish are drifting further south along Queensland’s coastline, with the possibility they will soon be found off the beaches of the Gold Coast.
However, Coast lifesavers are promising to remain vigilant to the threat to keep swimmers safe.
It comes after toxicologist Professor Jamie Seymour said he had “little doubt” Irukandji would keep moving down to the Gold and Sunshine Coasts after a stinger was found at Fraser Island on Sunday.
“It would shut beaches. It would collapse tourism,” the director of the Tropical Australian Venom Research Unit at James Cook University said.
Prof Seymour cited warmer sea temperatures as the reason Irukandji could migrate to Mooloolaba, and even as far south as Coolangatta.
Surf Life Saving Queensland’s Nathan Fyfe said there had not been any sightings of the deadly jellyfish on the Coast, but warmer weather and winds could bring them.
“It is hard to predict, but we are always keeping our eyes out and we will be prepared and monitoring the situation,” he said. “They could come down in warmer weather ... it depends how many there are, if they get blown in with the bluebottles ... but hopefully they stay up north.”
Queensland Tourism Industry’s chief executive officer Daniel Gschwind dismissed Prof Seymour’s concerns, saying there was no need for panic.
“We want people to have a great time here and go away healthy. We are concerned about any potential risk but there is no need to be alarmed at this point,” he said.
However Prof Seymor believes more forward-planning could be done on the issue and is “sick of” warning of the risk of the highly venomous species.
“How many more people need to get stung before it’s realised it is not just a one-off?” he asked.
“Be proactive, don’t wait until it becomes a larger problem. Throw money at it now.”
Mr Fyfe said if swimmers were stung, to call 000 immediately.
STINGER FACTS
• The Irukandji jellyfish, a member of the box jellyfish family, is tiny, but very venomous.
• Box jellyfish have caused more than 60 deaths in Australia in the past 100 years.
• If you are stung, symptoms can include severe headache, backache, muscle pains, chest and abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting, sweating, anxiety, hypertension, tachycardia and pulmonary oedema.
• One unusual symptom is a feeling of “impending doom”.