What was meant to be a relaxing family trip before the school year turned into a painful and unexpected encounter for an Austin woman \u2014 and now she\u2019s warning others to be cautious.<\/p>\n
Mini vacation turns into stingray scare for Texas family<\/p>\n
Joy Kennedy and her family were visiting Port Aransas for the first time when the trip took a turn.<\/p>\n
\u201cSuddenly I just felt something shoot into my foot,\u201d Kennedy said. \u201cI didn\u2019t know what it was. I was afraid to look down, but when I did, blood was just coming down.\u201d<\/p>\n
Kennedy had been stung by a stingray, its sharp barb puncturing her foot.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s sharp and pointed, but then it has serration that goes downward,\u201d said Jace Tunnell, director of community engagement at the Harte Research Institute. \u201cWhenever it cuts you or pokes you, those skin cells come off real easily and release the venom.\u201d<\/p>\n
Kennedy, bleeding with every step, found a lifeguard who bandaged her foot. But the pain grew so intense that she went to the emergency room.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe sting was more painful than when I got my hip dislocated,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
At the hospital, doctors took X-rays and soaked her foot in hot water \u2014 the recommended way to neutralize stingray venom.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat neutralizes it is hot water,\u201d Tunnell said. \u201cGetting hot water on it as much as you can bear will alleviate the pain.\u201d<\/p>\n
Kennedy shared the experience on social media, quickly drawing responses from locals who offered advice \u2014 including a reminder to use the \u201cstingray shuffle,\u201d dragging your feet along the sand as you enter the water so stingrays have time to swim away.<\/p>\n
Tunnell said stingrays are often found in shallow waters during the summer, feeding on clams, crabs and shrimp.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe fish was not meaning to hurt her,\u201d he said. \u201cBut when they get stepped on, their tail whips up and that\u2019s how the barb sticks up and you end up getting cut.\u201d<\/p>\n
Kennedy now calls the experience being \u201ckissed by a stingray.\u201d She\u2019s recovering well after a tetanus shot and antibiotics \u2014 and despite the scare, her family plans to make their trip to the area an annual tradition, minus the stingray encounter.<\/p>\n
Tunnell said stingray injuries are rarely deadly. If stung, he recommends immediately finding a lifeguard, who can determine whether further medical attention is needed.<\/p>\n
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