Luna quickly took a turn for the worse... she started 'foaming at the mouth'

The mother of a little girl who was stung by an Irakundji on K'gari has called for more warning signs on the popular tourist island after her daughter was rushed to hospital.

The mother of a toddler who was rushed to hospital after being stung by a jellyfish on K’gari says more needs to be done to warn people of the potential dangers of marine stingers.

Jacqui Murray was holidaying on K’gari (Fraser Island) with her husband and six kids when her three-year-old daughter Luna was stung by an Irukandji on Sunday morning.

“We were up with the kids early, and I had my baby in my arms,” she told Kidspot.

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“Two of my biggest kids were in the water, and they were trying to lure Luna into further depths.

“When they came out, she started complaining that the salt water was stinging her, so I ran her over to our campsite and ripped her bathers off immediately.

“I could see she’d been stung a few times near her tummy and underneath her armpits, so I went straight into mum mode.

“I tried stingose first, but that did nothing, so I got some antihistamines into her straight away.”

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Luna was flown to Hervey Bay Hospital shortly after she was stung. Picture: Supplied

"She was in and out of consciousness"

Luna’s condition quickly took a turn for the worse, as she started vomiting and “foaming at the mouth”.

“She had bad swelling, she was lethargic, and was in and out of consciousness,” Jacqui said

“I asked my 11-year-old daughter to run around the campsite to ask if anyone had any vinegar, but nobody did.

“I got an epipen out of my car, and then applied Greek yoghurt onto the main sting area, which subsided the swelling almost immediately.”

Jacqui then started scrambling to get phone reception on the popular tourist island to alert emergency services of her daughter’s condition.

“I had to stand on a log to get phone service,” she said.

“The ambulance couldn’t get across the island, so I told them I had an epipen ready to go, and they told me to give it to her straight away.

“That gave us a 15-minute window where her symptoms weren’t as bad, but she was still vomiting and foaming at the mouth.”

RELATED: Girl begged her mum to 'just let me die' after being stung by a jellyfish

Luna in the RACQ LifeFlight helicopter before taking off. Picture: Supplied

"Things could have been far worse"

Jacqui’s call with the paramedics dropped out, causing a momentary panic, but she eventually got back through and was advised a helicopter was on its way.

“They were there within 10 minutes,” she said.

“If they hadn’t arrived so quickly, things could have been far worse.”

Luna was flown to Hervey Bay Hospital, where she had a prolonged tachycardia reaction, high and low blood pressure, and big spikes and drops in her temperature.

However, she is well on the road to recovery, and will be discharged from hospital today.

“It was terrifying,” Jacqui said. “Without the epipen, it could have easily been a cardiac arrest situation, doing CPR on a beach in the middle of nowhere.”

RELATED: Woman and little girl stung by deadly jellyfish at Great Keppel Island

Luna spent two days in hospital fighting the symptoms of her sting. Picture: Supplied

"If people were more aware, they'd second guess about getting into the water"

Jacqui is sharing her daughter’s story to call for the QLD Government to install more warning signs about the risk of marine stingers, and more facilities to help deal with the aftermath of a potential sting.

She also wants people to know carrying an epipen is never a bad idea, even if nobody in your family is at risk of anaphylaxis.

“My concern is there were no signs up around the island about stingers,” she said.

“If people were more aware, they would definitely be second guessing about getting into the water.

“I know that while we’ve been in hospital, there have been other people flown in from the island. There was a baby and a 20-year-old yesterday, a young boy the day before, and another young girl the day before that.

“That’s five in the space of three days, and I believe that warrants some form of communication.”

Jacqui also called for vinegar stations to be made available to help treat stings.

“I’m lucky that I’m knowledgeable about medicine, and I have the skill and background to act quickly, but I don’t think a lot of other people know what to do,” she said.

“This is much more dangerous than people are led to believe, and most of the focus is still on the dingoes.”

RELATED: Two kids hospitalised after serious jellyfish stings

Thankfully Lun has recovered, and is due to be discharged today, January 16. Picture: Supplied

No plans for future K'gari holidays

Jacqui also said it would be the last time she took her family on holiday to K’gari, but not necessarily because of her daughter’s plight.

“It’s been destroyed by humans,” she said. “The impact we’re leaving, it’s embarrassing.

“People are leaving their porta-potties in the ground rather than taking them with them, and they’re destroying the creeks and the natural beauty.

“It’s just being used and abused, and I don’t think we deserve access to something so beautiful.”

Originally published as Luna quickly took a turn for the worse... she started 'foaming at the mouth'