Swimmers Stung By Jelly Fish In Daytona Beach

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla.,None — Jellyfish are stinging dozens of people along the Volusia County coast and it's happening while the beach is crowded with spring breakers.

Thousands of jelly fish were on the high tide line Tuesday morning in Daytona Beach.

Some spring break visitors crowding the beach are going to be taking home some painful memories. Many swimmers showed WFTV the marks left by cannonball and moon jellyfish that started floating into the area two days ago.

At least 25 people needed treatment on Monday and dozens more on Tuesday.

"They were creeping me out. Every time I saw one I tried to get out of the way, but the waves would just bring more in. They were disgusting. There was just a pile of them out there," said swimmer Alex Awve.

"I'm walking around like hopscotch. You're moving around and you seem them there and they're just kind of floating in the water," swimmer Liz Staege said.

WFTV paddled a camera out into the surf. The jellyfish were impossible to avoid. They'd dart away from the camera, but there were so many, even the lens couldn't avoid a direct hit, just like what's been happening to swimmers.

"Kind of started to feel a stinging sensation, so did she. We just started to run out of the water. We just had red marks and rashes all over. It was just burning," said Madeline Roznos.

The beach patrol is flying warning flags, but said currents typically move large populations out within a couple days. Some visitors said even if the jellyfish leave, they're not going back in the water.

"No, no way. We're not going to deal with that again. It's not worth it. It was not worth it," Roznos said.

Rip currents have been a concern too. Beach patrol had about 10 rescues. The water is warming up, and the surf is calming down too, which draws more people into the water.

WFTV