From The Sun
By VINCE SOODIN
Published: 26 Aug 2008
TWO British schoolgirls cheated death after being stung by a lethal Portuguese Man O’War.
Paddling Molly Purcell, ten, suffered toxic shock and gasped for breath after the tentacles of the sea creature — which can kill with a single sting — wrapped around her arms and legs.
Pal Amelia Walsh, 12, was left with huge welts on her legs after brushing part of the creature that was draped over a rock.
Medics used freezing water and seawater to flush out the toxins.
Bathers were evacuated after last Friday’s attack at Monmouth Beach, Dorset.
Molly, of Ascot, Berks, said: “I thought I was stung by a bee at first, then suddenly it felt like my arm was on fire. It got worse and worse until I couldn’t stop shaking.”
Last night mum Sheenagh said: “Molly is getting better but her arms are still very swollen.”
Brits were warned last month of seven species of poisonous sea creatures heading for our shores due to global warming.
30 odd years ago I remember diving into the sea only to make a hasty retreat due to 1000’s of Portuguese Man O’War all around me.
This is very anecdotal, but these things have been getting washed up on West Coast Scottish beaches after Atlantic storms for a long time – at least since when my grandfather was a child. Nothing to see here, move along.
These creatures are driven the wind and their appearance is related to wind direction and currents.
Isn’t “The Sun” a tabloid, like “The Enquierer”?
I remember being stung while swimming by Portuguese Men O’War when I was a boy. It was off the coast of Hastings, UK and it would have been in the mid to late fifties. I seem to recall that jellyfish were a threat off the Sussex coast for about three years running.
OMG!
“…poisonous sea creatures heading for our shores due to global warming…”
How long before they make it here to Colorado??!!
OMG – I hope they don’t make it to the North Pole. What will happen to the polar bears? 🙂
Every malady or odd occurrence these days is blamed on Global warming. 8 or 9 years ago there were hundreds of Portuguese man O’War that washed up here on the South Carolina beaches. I have not seen them since so does that mean we have Global cooling?
Great site, Anthony, I do not post often but read the entries and many of the thoughtful comments.
This species of jellyfish and others are common in British waters at this time of year. Global warming? No, lazy journalism.
“Chuck L (08:19:49) :
OMG – I hope they don’t make it to the North Pole. What will happen to the polar bears? :)”
You’re too late! They are drowning already.
The British Sun ‘newspaper’ is the tabloid’s tabloid, complete with topless page 3 girls and banner headlines about who’s dating whom in the celebrity world. They tend to write articles about TV soap characters as if they were real people, so you shouldn’t take anything they say about things that may or may not have happened in the real world too seriously. The sad thing is that it’s the best selling ‘newspaper’ here in Britain. Of course Britain is also home to supposedly more serious newspapers such as The Guardian and The Independent, both of which frequently print mouth-frothing we’re-all-going-die articles about global warming. You just have to sigh and get on with life.
The government of Portugal must be made to pay reparations for any consequences of this jellyfish war. Perhaps we should launch a counterattack with our American Jellyfish against the Man of War.
Mike Bryant (08:29:42) :
“Perhaps we should launch a counterattack with our American Jellyfish against the Man of War.”
Alas, American jellyfish have been outsourced to China.
We occasionally get Portuguese men of War in the sea south of the UK it’s not uncommon and depends on winds and tides not global warming.
By the way how about this polar bear story
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/main.jhtml?xml=/earth/2008/08/30/eapolar130.xml
I suspect it’s yet another load of nonsense
Thank goodness they didn’t blame it on Climate Change.
“Which can kill with a single sting…” Hmmm. I’ve had their tentacles wrapped around my arm & hand. Hurt like an SOB, but by putting meat tenderizer on it one can reduce the pain. Other jellyfish (like the box jellyfish, sea wasp and Irukandji) can truly kill (and quickly!), but the man-o-war is more of a nuisance.
I’d be more worried about bees, auto accidents and Al Gore (and his rabid disciples) than these things.
The Sun is a rag-mag….typical of the Weekly World we see here in the U.S. The left want to blame EVERYTHING on Global Warming (or their new buzzword “Climate Change”)…it is the the religion (since they lack faith in the Father) of the left…
Interesting post! 🙂
http://www.cookevilleweatherguy.com
Next we’ll learn of a population explosion due to a massive redeployment of storks in Europe due to AGW.
“Perhaps we should launch a counterattack with our American Jellyfish against the Man of War.”
The most American of jellyfish species is the “peanutbutterand jellyfish.”
Maybe they should go back and read
The Lion’s Mane, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle…
How soon they forget!
Sadly, my friend, the American jellyfish (Aurelia americanus) was wiped out when that Eeeevil UberKapitalist, Mr. Krabs, the proprietor of The Krusty Krab® restaurant, harvested every last one of them in order to make Jelly Patties®.
The rat-bastard should be brought up before the World Court at The Hague and charged with crimes against Mother Gaia.
Portuguese Man O’War are in the waters around the southern coast of the UK every year, particularly in the seas around Cornwall and Devon. This is nothing new and not really news. Its much the same as announcing that swallows have arrived each year.
Portugese Man-O-War
Painful? Yes
Lethal? NO
Poor Molly did, no doubt, have a painful few hours. Toxic shock – no way. Probably just hyperventilation from her mum’s anxiety.
Regarding retaliation; I believe our jellyfish attack treaty with Portugul is still in effect?
You have all made my point!:
http://lamarguerite.wordpress.com/2008/08/14/whats-wrong-with-biodiversity/
William Hiley (08:28:55) : “The British Sun ‘newspaper’ is the tabloid’s tabloid, complete with topless page 3 girls”
Uh, got a URL? 🙂
John-X:
After the catastrophic ice melting and sea-level rise, it’s only a matter of time til the Man-o-war reaches you in Colorado.
Not lethal. Got one wrapped around me when I was about 9 or so. I took a bath in ammonia (not my idea).
Great blog. I read it religiously.
What point?
Here you go… http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/
Enjoy. 🙂
Those media people know how to get money.
By false information and intimidation.
I should use some of their tactics for my own pursuits…
(Shakes head)
With any luck, Portugal will succeed where the Spanish, French, and Germans failed?
(Come to think of it, didn’t the bulk of the Spanish Armada launch from Lisbon?)
Living on the South Coast of England, we’ve had Portuguese Man of Wars turn up for years. I’ve been sea fishing since 1978 so I should know.
Some years none , other years loads
“With any luck, Portugal will succeed where the Spanish, French, and Germans failed?” evan
Didn’t John Paul Jones give em a big scare?
“Perhaps we should launch a counterattack with our American Jellyfish against the Man of War.”
They should be easy to find, all American jellyfish are located in Washington D C
The jellyfish is spineless, D.C. should be a good place to look.
Question: What bad things have not been blamed on Global Warming?
REPLY: The Taliban comes to mind.
At risk of being pedantic I visited a Purbeck Marine Centre in Kimmeridge Bay (just down the coast from Poole) last Wednesday and was shown two Portuguese Man O’ War (should that be Men O’ War) which had been collected from the rocks on the foreshore and were being kept in a small tank. But the poor little things were only about 70mm across with 250mm long tentacles. What is worse I was advised that they weren’t jellyfish at all but were siphonophore—a colony of specialized polyps and medusoids.
This stuff is getting to be so predictable.
Jellyfish migration?
No, simple-minded journalists pumping out hyperinflated AGW-caused tales of imminent disaster.
That was a bit pedantic, Oldjim.
We had a few of them washed ashore on the Long Island (NY) beaches during the outbreak of the ’70s. Never had the misfortune of being stung. Got nailed once or twice by conventional jellyfish, but it was no big deal.
What you have to understand about Anthropomorphic Global Warming – a good rule of thumb, if you like – is that AGW is bad news for all things Nice and good news for all things Nasty. Polar bears, being cute and fluffy, and therefore Nice, are suffering because of AGW. Stinging jellyfish, malaria, kidney stones, crabgrass – heck, anything with spines, stingers, fangs, or otherwise noxious or pestilential, fall into the Nasty category, and thus are thriving and will shortly take over the Earth.
If you think about it, this is an update of the 10 Plagues of Egypt (sort of). All because Pharaoh (GW sceptics, SUV drivers, oil companies, President Bush) didn’t listen… Instead of Jehovah, we now have Gaia…
Whaaaaat? It isn’t Christmas or Easter already, is it?
As a Brit I remember being taught about Portuguese Man O War as a child. That included that they could come as far north as the UK due to the “Gulf Stream’s” warm waters. How the world changes.
Global Warming Linked to Taliban and Other Radical Groups
New study finds that higher temperatures have a direct impact on human developement. Climate change in the Middle East is causing a particularly virulent form of religious fundamentalism. Scientists say that when we win the war on global warming, these individuals will be as gentle as lambs.
Not Really.
“Question: What bad things have not been blamed on Global Warming?
REPLY: The Taliban comes to mind.”
The site that lists “everything caused by Global Warming” includes Terrorism.
I have to admit that I’m terrified by some of the proposed ‘solutions’.