A special worldwide lionfish awareness and first aid initiative has launched in the Cayman Islands.
There are several components to the programme, according to Dan Orr of Divers Alert Network.
“I was down for Scubabowl 2011 and spoke to people about lionfish. We went on some culling dives and noticed a number of resorts had programmes to control the population.
We have seen that throughout the Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean.
“We felt that because of the increased interaction between divers and lionfish there was an increased risk of divers being stung. Scuba training does not necessarily deal with that so as part of our mission we decided to produce a series of Lionfish Safety Awareness Cards,” Mr. Orr said.
The cards have information on what to do if you are diving and are stung with some basic first aid steps for treatment.
Distributing cards
The Divers Alert Network partnered with the Cayman Islands Tourism Association for distribution of the 55,000 cards to water sports members, at no cost to the association.
“We will be doing the same thing in other parts of the Caribbean, Atlantic Coast and Gulf of Mexico. Cayman was the first place we did it.
“More and more people are being stung; not only divers but fishermen who do not know what to do with one at the end of their line or their spear. Someone got stung trying to take a photograph and just repositioning the fish, we heard. It is something everyone has to consider. The lionfish are everywhere; there is no place that they have not been established,” Mr. Orr said.
The cards are simple and lightweight and the hope is that one gets in the hand of every scuba diver and snorkeller.
“We also created a public service announcement which will be distributed to all media networks to raise awareness among divers and fishermen.
We would also like to be able to produce an inexpensive or hopefully free, single use, individual first aid kit to help divers treat their injuries.
“Hot water is recommended if you are stung. Remove any foreign material, soak it in hot water, non-scalding – it should be between 110 and 113 degrees, and get to the nearest medical facility as soon as you can,” he advised.
The Divers Alert Network’s hotline is 919-684-9111.
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