GIANT ‘killer’ jellyfish are set to appear in the waters off UK beaches as temperatures soar this week.

Forecasts of up to 34C in some areas could tempt vast Portuguese Man o’ War jellyfish, which can grow tentacles the size of FIVE double-decker busses, up from their deep ocean lairs.

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The huge fish drift unseen below the water’s surface and one sting from their 160-foot tentacles can cause agony.

High temperatures are set to warm the shallow waters near beaches this week, while the tide washes up the tiny marine creatures on which the jellyfish feed.

Unsuspecting swimmers could find themselves confronted with the deadly ocean dwellers risking horrific skin burns and even death.

Very young and very old people are known to be at ‘high risk’ of death from giant jellyfish stings.

Parents have been warned that kids are most at risk from the killer creatures.

In 2010 Maria Furcas, 69, suffered an allergic reaction and tragically died after being stung on the leg by a Man o’ War as she swam with her sister at Porto Tramatzu near Cagliari, Sardinia.

Then in 2018 13 year-old Verity Stainton staggered in agony from the sea with burns all over her body after being wrapped up by the nightmarish creature while swimming near Mablethorpe, Lincolnshire.

Verity’s mum Christina recounted her terrifying experience, saying: “The tentacles were wrapped round her body, and her arms and fingers”.

“She had large stings to her thighs, and rashes on her legs. She has whip-like marks on her arm and her back and buttocks”.

A spokesperson for a national survey tracking jellyfish populations said that they have seen “significant recent rises in the numbers of some jellyfish species in UK seas”.

What to do if you have been stung by a jellyfish

Do

• Rinse the sting with seawater (not freshwater)
• Remove any spines from the skin with tweezers
• Soak the sting in water (as hot as possible) for 30minutes or use hot flannels/towels
• Take painkillers like paracetamol or Ibuprofen

Don’t

• Use vinegar on the sting
• Pee on the sting
• Apply ice or a cold pack
• Touch any spines with bare hands
• Cover or close the wound

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