Siloso Beach Bans People from Entering Its Water After Box Jellyfish Sighting

I know what you’re thinking. Isn’t this old news? #StopRehashingNewsGoodyFeed

Wasn’t this reported during the time where Trump wasn’t infected with Covid-19 yet and was trying to ban TikTok?

Well, it’s back again.

Siloso Beach Bans People from Entering Its Water After Box Jellyfish Sighting

The Sentosa Development Corporation (SDC) says that beach-goers visiting Siloso Beach will not be allowed to enter the waters after a venomous box jellyfish was spotted on 9 Oct 2020 (Friday).

A spokesperson for SDC also said that beach patrol officers will also patrol and survey the waters and beaches around the island more frequently.

Anyone who sees the venomous box jellyfish is advised to avoid touching it.

Alert other people nearby and beach patrol officers, and if stung, don’t use your fingers to take out the tentacles or rub the area.

Approach on-the-ground officers or call for help via the Sentosa Rangers hotline (1800-726-4377).

Previously

If you’re wondering why the advisory sounds so familiar, that’s because a box jellyfish had claimed its first victim at Sentosa back in July 2020.

SDC had issued a similar advisory back then.

The victim was a girl who was paddling in the water near an eatery located at Tanjong Beach Walk.

The family did not approach the beach patrol officers for assistance and rushed home to apply vinegar to her wounds. They stayed just 10 minutes away from where they were.

It was clarified, then, that beach patrol officers do have vinegar on hand for cases like these.

You can read more about the incident here, including whether peeing on the wound helps relieve the pain.

FYI: No. No, it doesn’t.

Not Just At Sentosa

Even before that incident, there have been several other venomous box jellyfish sightings reported, and they’re not confined to Sentosa waters:

• 16 July – a box jellyfish was spotted from a boat around the Pulau Seringat and Lazarus Island dock
• 14 July- a box jellyfish was spotted from a boat in the Tuas area
• 3 July – a box jellyfish more than 1m in length was seen around One Degree 15 Marina Sentosa Cove

Tips For Swimming In Open Waters By A Victim

And in March this year, a woman was stung by one of these nightmarish creatures while swimming in the waters off National Sailing Centre at East Coast Park.

The woman who was stung said the muscles in her back, hips, and shoulder went into spasm and that she had difficulty breathing.

Thankfully, she had a friend who was swimming with her and managed to bring her back to shore safely and got her help.

She also has three tips for people swimming in the ocean:

• Swim close to the shore
• Never swim alone
• Always swim with your safety buoy (preferably one with storage if you are swimming a long way so you can pack antihistamines).

You can find out more about box jellyfishes here.

Well, between the jellyfish thingy and the weekend restrictions, I think it’s safe to say that lesser people are going to visit the Island of Fun for now.