Third death on Barrier Reef raises fears of lethal jellyfish

A BRITISH man has died while scuba diving on the Great Barrier Reef in Australia two days after two French tourists died within minutes of each other while snorkelling, prompting speculation that the fatalities were caused by venomous jellyfish.

The man, aged 60, had been diving off a boat during a holiday with his wife and was found yesterday on the ocean floor with his regulator out of his mouth. He has not yet been named.

Tour operators said the man was lifted on board and the crew, from Quicksilver Cruises, tried to resuscitate him. A doctor was sent by helicopter but could not revive the man. “We do not know the cause of death yet,” a spokesman from Quicksilver Cruises said.

The incident occurred at Agincourt Reef off Port Douglas, Queensland, about 100 miles north of Michaelmas Cay, where Jacques Goron, 76, and Danielle Franck, 74, died on Wednesday. Both had medical conditions but the cause of death is yet to be confirmed.

Dr Ross Walker, a cardiologist, said he thought they might have been killed by Irukandji jellyfish, a transparent creature less than an inch in diameter found off northern Australia. Most victims are unaware of being stung and can go into cardiac arrest within 30 minutes.

Dr Walker said: “It’s highly unlikely two people are going to die within minutes just because they’ve got underlying medical conditions.” Peter Fenner, an expert on jellyfish, agreed the French couple may have been stung.

Tour operators insisted the jellyfish are not present at this time of year and the deaths were a “one-in-a-million” coincidence.

30 The number of minutes before victims of a sting from an Irukandji jellyfish go into cardiac arrest