Latest news with #spiderbite
Daily Mail
30-06-2025
- Daily Mail
Indigenous inmate complained about being bitten by a spider before dying just days away from his release
An Indigenous inmate has died just days before his release after he told prison staff he had been bitten by a spider. Aboriginal man, Wayne Green, 41, was bitten inside Parklea Correctional Centre in Sydney and, two weeks later, died in Westmead Hospital about 9.55pm on Friday. He received medical treatment after alerting staff to symptoms of severe chest pain. Mr Green was first treated by St Vincent hospital staff, the private health provider inside the Sydney prison, and was subsequently transferred to Westmead Hospital when his condition deteriorated. A spokesperson for the private operators of the prison, MTC Broadspectrum confirmed the Indigenous inmate died on Friday. 'The man had been transferred from Parklea Correctional Centre to hospital at about 12.55pm for treatment,' they told Daily Mail Australia. 'MTC extends our sympathies to his family, friends and the wider Aboriginal community.' The prison operators are working with Corrective Services NSW and NSW Police 'who investigate all deaths in custody regardless of the circumstances'. Medical staff were told about the spider bite on Friday after treating the inmate for chest pain, according to The Daily Telegraph. It's understood the spider bite may have happened two weeks prior to Mr Green's death. Investigators are awaiting the results of toxicology reports before a cause of death can be confirmed. Mr Green was due to be released from Parklea on July 11. The MTC spokesperson revealed a 'protest' broke out at the prison on Saturday following the Aboriginal man's death. 'About 9.00am on Saturday, June 28, in response to the death, a group of inmates conducted a peaceful protest in an accommodation unit,' they said. 'After a period of negotiation, the majority of inmates were voluntarily secured in their cells. A small number of inmate representatives then spoke with centre management. 'At about 12.30pm, inmates were released from their cells, and normal routine recommenced. 'There were no injuries to staff or inmates during the incident, and nothing was damaged.' Mr Green's death will be subject to a coronial inquest.
Yahoo
27-06-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
'False widow spider bit me while I slept after crawling through open window at night'
A desperate dad is warning Brits to be careful around false widows after being hospitalised by what he believes was a bite from a spider. Rob Bendelow was staying at his partner's house in Wigan when he was unwittingly bitten by what he believes to be a false widow spider during the night. The 39-year-old believes the tiny terror crawled through the open bedroom window and scurried into his bed sheets in the early hours of May 18, 2025. It was only when the dad-of-five woke up the next day that he noticed a mark on the back of his right leg, which he mistook for a bee sting. However over the following few days, Rob began feeling excruciating pain and intense pressure down his leg. The former handyman then began researching his mysterious mark and discovered he was bitten by what he believes is a false widow spider - whose bites produce necrosis of the flesh. READ MORE: Manchester's fastest growing brand revealed in new Sunday Times 100 list READ MORE: Benidorm lads' holiday ends in horror as dad breaks neck after being 'pushed into shallow pool' Rob cut open the bite using a pair of scissors to relieve the pressure, causing 'unbelievable' brown and yellow pus to ooze out. As his symptoms worsened, Rob rushed to Royal Blackburn Teaching Hospital, in Blackburn, Lancashire, while suffering from what he believes was the early stages of sepsis. Doctors pumped the dad with antibiotics to treat the infected 50p-sized wound and considered performing an operation if his condition did not improve. Luckily, Rob made a full recovery but said the 'frightening' ordeal has made him much more vigilant of any other beasties lurking between the sheets. Rob, from Accrington, Lancashire, said: "I'd fallen asleep and woke up the next morning to what I thought was a bee sting on the back of my right leg. "My partner loves to leave the bedroom windows open. I sweat a lot and was sleeping with just a pair of boxers on. I think it came in through the open window, felt the humidity from my body sweating and that's where it bit me. It didn't wake me up. Because the weather has been so hot, it's the perfect breeding ground for them. "It was irritating and I kept feeling a pressure in it. It wasn't that painful, it was just irritating. After two days, I was in excruciating pain and just feeling loads of pressure in my leg. On the third day, I cut open the bite myself with a pair of scissors to try and relieve some of the pressure and get some of the gunk out. What was coming out was unbelievable - it was brown and yellow." Rob sought help from his local pharmacy before rushing to hospital when the infection worsened. Horrified Rob, who believes he was in the early stages of sepsis, was admitted for three days while doctors desperately tried to treat the infection. Rob said: "They didn't know what it was. They just noticed it was very infected and the infection went very deep. They said it was definitely an insect bite of some kind. They were thinking about cutting it out but ended up flushing me with fluids, antibiotics, and painkillers. "I think sepsis was setting in when I got to hospital because it was so infected. I felt really fatigued, it really took it out of me. If I left it any longer, it could've been a lot more serious. It was a frightening week. I've still got a massive hole in my leg. It's about the size of a 50p coin. "I think it'll be at least another six weeks or so before it scabs away. I definitely check the bed now. Every time I see a spider now I think 'get away!'. It's made me a lot more vigilant."
Daily Mail
19-05-2025
- Health
- Daily Mail
Britain's most dangerous spider strikes in Hertfordshire: Man is left in 'unbearable' pain and struggling to walk after bite from noble false widow
A bite from 'Britain's most dangerous spider' has left a man in 'unbearable' pain and struggling to walk. Keith Robinson, 65, says he developed a large, angry inflammation on his leg shortly after clearing out cobwebs at home. At first he tried to treat it himself using painkillers and savlon, but before long it became too much to bear and he went to the hospital. Now he's been diagnosed with cellulitis around the wound, and can only walk for short distances before 'intense pain' sets in. Mr Robinson, from Watford, Hertfordshire, believes a noble false widow was responsible. He said: 'It must be more than coincidence that I had removed a large number of cobwebs from the house by hoover. 'So I'm thinking that I've disturbed a spider, and at some point, I got bitten.' The bite, unnoticeable at first, only got worse as the days passed. Keith Robinson, 65, says he developed a large, angry inflammation on his leg shortly after clearing out cobwebs at home He said: 'The stinging pain almost became unbearable at times until I was given stronger pain killers and antibiotics. 'The worst it got was the weekend of May 10. That's when I decided it was best to go to the hospital. 'Doctors diagnosed cellulitis due to infection of the bite. 'I was given a blood test and put on a saline drip, before I was released with painkillers and antibiotics.' The noble false widow is 'widely regarded as the most dangerous spider breeding in Britain,' according to a 2020 paper by Clive Hambler, an Oxford University zoologist. Known as Steatoda nobilis, they're not native to Britain and are thought to have arrived from the Canary Islands in banana boxes in the late 1800s before slowly spreading northwards. Keith hadn't realised just how severe a spider bite could be in Britain. He said: 'I can work but I am not able to walk very far without intense pain in that leg for quite a while. The noble false widow is 'widely regarded as the most dangerous spider breeding in Britain,' according to a 2020 paper by Clive Hambler, an Oxford University zoologist 'Life at home is very sedentary at the moment. 'It's not easy to cope with being so immobile now and the pain can be relentless without the painkillers. 'I hope I never get bitten again – this has been a painful experience just from a spider bite here in the UK.' Now he's speaking out to warn others to be cautious around the noble false widow. He said: 'Avoid them – check all spiders in your house or outbuildings where they like to live and remove them if found. 'If you catch a bite or suspect one then go to hospital and get it checked out the same day.' ARACHNOPHOBIA IS IN OUR DNA Recent research has claimed that a fear of spiders is a survival trait written into our DNA. Dating back hundreds of thousands of years, the instinct to avoid arachnids developed as an evolutionary response to a dangerous threat, the academics suggest. It could mean that arachnophobia, one of the most crippling of phobias, represents a finely tuned survival instinct. And it could date back to early human evolution in Africa, where spiders with very strong venom have existed millions of years ago. Study leader Joshua New, of Columbia University in New York, said: 'A number of spider species with potent, vertebrate specific venoms populated Africa long before hominoids and have co-existed there for tens of millions of years.
The Sun
18-05-2025
- Health
- The Sun
Horror bite from Britain's ‘most dangerous spider' leaves man struggling to walk & in ‘unbearable' pain
A BITE from "Britain's most dangerous spider" has left a man in "unbearable" pain and struggling to walk. Keith Robinson, 65, says he developed a large, angry inflammation on his leg shortly after clearing out cobwebs at home. 6 6 6 At first he tried to treat it himself using painkillers and Savlon, but before long it became too much to bear and he went to the hospital. Now he's been diagnosed with cellulitis around the wound, and can only walk for short distances before "intense pain" sets in. Keith, from Watford, Hertfordshire, believes a noble false widow was responsible. He said: "It must be more than coincidence that I had removed a large number of cobwebs from the house by hoover. "So I'm thinking that I've disturbed a spider, and at some point, I got bitten." The bite, unnoticeable at first, only got worse as the days passed. He said: "The stinging pain almost became unbearable at times until I was given stronger pain killers and antibiotics. "The worst it got was the weekend of May 10. That's when I decided it was best to go to the hospital. "Doctors diagnosed cellulitis due to infection of the bite. "I was given a blood test and put on a saline drip, before I was released with painkillers and antibiotics." The noble false widow is "widely regarded as the most dangerous spider breeding in Britain," according to a 2020 paper by Clive Hambler, an Oxford University zoologist. Known as Steatoda nobilis, the spiders are not native to Britain and are thought to have arrived from the Canary Islands in banana boxes in the late 1800s before slowly spreading northwards. Keith hadn't realised just how severe a spider bite could be in Britain. He said: "I can work but I am not able to walk very far without intense pain in that leg for quite a while. "Life at home is very sedentary at the moment. "It's not easy to cope with being so immobile now and the pain can be relentless without the painkillers. "I hope I never get bitten again - this has been a painful experience just from a spider bite here in the UK." Now he's speaking out to warn others to be cautious around the noble false widow. He said: "Avoid them - check all spiders in your house or outbuildings where they like to live and remove them if found. "If you catch a bite or suspect one then go to hospital and get it checked out the same day." 6 6 6
