Nigel Hunt, a 59-year-old British man from the Isles of Scilly, survived a minor spider bite that later proved fatal. While lying in bed at home on August 30, Mr Hunt was bitten on the stomach by a potentially fatal spider. Initially, he felt no pain and thought nothing of it. However, just four days later, while on holiday in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, he became seriously ill, BBC He was rushed to hospital, where doctors operated on him after suspecting he had an abscess in his abdomen.
However, further investigation revealed something more serious—necrotizing fasciitis, a rare and fatal condition known as the “flesh-eating disease.” He then underwent emergency surgery, which saved his life.
Talking about the incident, he said, “After reaching the airport and going through check-in, we headed for departure. At this point, everything seemed to be getting worse very fast, from being sick in the departure lounge to having my head in a sick bag for most of the journey. Upon reaching Sharm El Sheikh, we collected our luggage and headed to the pharmacy to get some antibiotics or something to relieve the sickness. They prescribed some things and the next day we went to the hospital to get the same medicine.”
”The next two days it got worse, so we went to another hospital in Hadaba, where I immediately had blood tests and an ultrasound scan. Then we waited a few hours for the doctor to check the results. He called us and said it was good we came here, because the bite was from a false widow or brown recluse spider,” she added.
according to the nhs According to the website, necrotizing fasciitis is a rare and life-threatening infection that can occur when a wound becomes infected and requires immediate hospital treatment.
Mr Hunt credits his second visit to hospital with saving his life. “If I hadn’t gone to hospital for a second check-up in that crucial period of 6-10 days, I wouldn’t be alive today,” he recalls.
Although he is on the road to recovery, Mr Hunt still has a long journey ahead. His wound is still open, requiring regular dressing changes every few days.
He has also issued a stern warning to his fellow residents of the Isles of Scilly. “I think it is important to alert everyone to be vigilant and check for spiders,” he stressed.
