The province has confirmed recent sightings of Portuguese man o’ war along the shores of our local beaches.
7-year-old Maria Legge, who touched what she thought were a pair of pink sunglasses floating in the water, turned out to be a Portuguese man o’ war, they look pink and blue.
She was stung at Lawrencetown Beach and had to go to the hospital. Others have been spotted at Risser’s Beach on the South Shore.
Vinegar is a good first aid treatment, scraping off remnants of tentacles with a bank, or credit card is also very helpful in keeping victims out of the emergency room.
Experts say there’s traditionally a man o’ war sighting in Nova Scotia every decade or so, but recently, sightings have been on the rise.
Australia reports about 10,000 stings a year, I’ve seen them on Florida beaches.
While there are no plans to close beaches here at this time, warning signs are a possibility.
Stay safe!
-Ian
Credits: ctvnews.ca & globalnews.ca/
