Swimmers suffer 'chemical burn' jellyfish stings

Nikki Cullis is still suffering after taking part in a swimming event off Scilly two weeks ago

Sea swimmers who suffered stings by jellyfish off the Isles of Scilly have compared them to "chemical burns".

The incident happened during a Scilly Swim Challenge when a group of about 120 swimmers came across two swarms of jellyfish, believed to have been "mauve stingers".

One swimmer, Nikki Cullis, said thousands of jellyfish had been blocking the route, adding she could hear the "involuntary screams" of participants who got stung.

Another swimmer, Kerry Friend, said she had been "attacked badly" on her arms, face and nose.

Ms Cullis said the group was hit by a "wall" of jellyfish

Ms Cullis said the group had been swimming around the south east side of St Mary's when they came across a small number of jellyfish.

"Suddenly, a wall of jellyfish hit us," she said. "You could hear screaming involuntarily because the stings were quite painful."

Ms Cullis said she had been wearing a wetsuit so she was only stung on her wrist and neck but she said some people had only been wearing swimsuits.

She said all of the swimmers, about 120, had been pulled out of the water by event organisers after they came across a second swarm.

"I think everybody had got stung in some way, shape or form," she added.

Ms Cullis said her symptoms had grown gradually worse over time.

"I started getting sores that were getting worse and were getting bigger," she said. "It was like my skin was eating itself."

The swimmer sought medical attention and said a doctor had compared the stings to "second-degree chemical burns".

Nikki Cullis said thousands of jellyfish had been blocking the route

Kerry Friend, who was also stung during the swim, said she had been wearing a sleeveless wetsuit.

"My arms got attacked quite badly, my face, my nose," she said.

Ms Friend said she had since suffered a secondary reaction in which the skin "flared up".

She said: "Other people in our group went to A&E because theirs had actually opened up into pus. There are people on antibiotics."

Ms Friend, who has taken part in the event a number of times, said safety was always a top priority for the organisers.

"It is just one of these things you can't control," she added.

Swimmers believe the jellyfish were mauve stingers, which come from the Mediterranean

Steve Brindley, from Bath, suffered stings to his wrists and ankles.

He said: "Thank the Lord for the wetsuit.

"The stings flared up big time about eight days after the swim and have been itching like hell until the last few days.

"It was so bad it was waking me up in the middle of the night."

Mr Brindley said the stings flared up about eight days after the event