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Spain issues jellyfish alert
Madrid, Aug 8, 2006 The Spanish government on Tuesday issued an alert to tourists on the country's Mediterranean coast following a jellyfish invasion, most likely due to a rise in water temperatures. In a statement the government warned that there was "a health risk in case of contact" with the jellyfish, advising anybody stung to wash the affected area with seawater and not rub it as that would cause the poison to spread. "Yesterday (Monday) there were many in the water but today it's a little calmer," a Red Cross spokesman told AFP by telephone from the southern town of Salobrena. In the eastern tourist mecca of Benidorm, which reported a jellyfish alert on Monday, the municipal councilllor with responsibility for beaches Josefa Perez said a shoal of the creatures had moved further out to sea and the threat to bathers had receded. A new symbol -- a white flag with blue jellyfish depicted -- has been created this year to warn swimmers of any danger. It can be seen fluttering alongside the usual green, yellow and red flags indicating swimming conditions. Environment Minister Cristina Narbona and ecologists have put the jellyfish invasion down to rising water temperatures. Professor for the Mediterranean Institute of Advanced Studies, Carlos Duarte, told El Pais newspaper that overfishing also played a part as there were now fewer natural predators in the sea to feed on the jellyfish, thereby reducing their numbers. Community Email This Article Comment On This Article Related Links Dirt, rocks and all the stuff we stand on firmly
Lebanese oil spill could rival Exxon Valdez disaster: UN
Nairobi, Aug 8, 2006 An oil spill caused by Israeli raids on a Lebanese power plant could rival the 1989 Exxon Valdez disaster that despoiled the Alaskan coast if not urgently addressed, the United Nations said Tuesday. |
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