{"id":120881,"date":"2023-10-20T19:09:45","date_gmt":"2023-10-20T19:09:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lasixlineon.com\/?p=120881"},"modified":"2023-10-20T19:09:45","modified_gmt":"2023-10-20T19:09:45","slug":"forget-bedbugs-savage-colombian-sand-fleas-left-me-fearing-smallpox-was-back","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lasixlineon.com\/world-news\/forget-bedbugs-savage-colombian-sand-fleas-left-me-fearing-smallpox-was-back\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Forget bedbugs \u2013 savage Colombian sand fleas left me fearing Smallpox was back\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"<li><span>Bookmark<\/span><span><svg class=\"active-svg svg-change-fill\" width=\"24\" height=\"24\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><\/path><\/path><\/svg><svg class=\"svg-bookmark-done\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"14\" height=\"18\" viewBox=\"0 0 22 28\" fill=\"none\"><\/path><\/svg><svg class=\"svg-to-bookmark\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"14\" height=\"18\" viewBox=\"0 0 25 28\" fill=\"none\"><\/path><\/svg><\/span><span><\/span><\/li>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i2-prod.dailystar.co.uk\/incoming\/article31242141.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s615\/1_c45139d2-ddc2-4512-8bad-6c2ab7390966JPG.jpg\"><\/p>\n<p>Get the best travel tips, advice and holiday deals<\/p>\n<h2>Thank you for subscribing!<\/h2>\n<p>Get the best travel tips, advice and holiday deals<\/p>\n<p>We have more newsletters<\/p>\n<p>Skin-crawling reports of bedbugs wreaking havoc across Paris have left worried Brits throwing out furniture amid a leap in infestations across the UK too.<\/p>\n<p>Councils have admitted to an \u2018alarming\u2019 rise in the critters on British soil, while the pests have also made appearances in offices and cars across London. But, while the grim bugs are certainly a pain, my unfortunate run-in with a far worse critter left me itching all night and fearing a comeback of deadly Smallpox. <\/p>\n<p>Sharing a bed with bedbugs in a hostel in Bucharest, Romania last year did leave me with bite marks and specks of blood on my sheets, but it was nothing compared to the butchering handed to me at the mercy of ruthless Colombian sand fleas.<\/p>\n<p><b> READ MOR: UK bedbug outbreak &apos;coming&apos; as &apos;manic&apos; pest controllers &apos;pulled from pillar to post&apos; <\/b><\/p>\n<p><b> <i> From infuriating tiny pests to massive elephants, our animal news can be read here <\/i> <\/b><\/p>\n<p>The gorgeous beaches of Palomino, on Colombia\u2019s stunning Caribbean coast, look peaceful and relaxing. But hidden away under the picturesque white sand are tiny organisms waiting to burrow into the skin of their next unsuspecting victim.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i2-prod.dailystar.co.uk\/incoming\/article31241903.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s615b\/2_IMG_9811.jpg\"><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\n<figure data-mod=\"image\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i2-prod.dailystar.co.uk\/incoming\/article31242496.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s458\/0_BANNER-Babet.jpg\"><\/figure>\n<p> Storm Babet claims third victim and sends plane off runway \u2013 but &apos;worst is yet to come&apos;<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/s2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/@trinitymirrordigital\/chameleon-branding\/publications\/dailystar\/img\/logo-schema-dailystar.png\"><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li>\n<figure data-mod=\"image\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i2-prod.dailystar.co.uk\/incoming\/article31207273.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s458\/0_JS314232241.jpg\"><\/figure>\n<p> EasyJet passenger poos on plane floor leaving Brits stranded as flight is cancelled<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/s2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/@trinitymirrordigital\/chameleon-branding\/publications\/dailystar\/img\/logo-schema-dailystar.png\"><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Although the little critters are known as \u2018sand fleas\u2019 due to the way they hop and jump across the beach, they\u2019re actually crustaceans &#8211; meaning they\u2019re in the same family as crabs and lobsters. The parasites pop up in tropical climates across South and Central America and can bury into their victim\u2019s skin before swelling to up to 2,000 times their original size.<\/p>\n<p>They\u2019ve been known to lay eggs whilst burrowed in their unfortunate victims, who host the sand flea\u2019s offspring until they hatch and fall out. I was lucky enough to avoid little critters leaping out from beneath my skin yet after a seemingly harmless sunbathe, I counted more than 200 bites from the grim creatures on my feet and ankles alone.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i2-prod.dailystar.co.uk\/incoming\/article31241904.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s615b\/3_3581ff6f-4dc7-4323-9e19-37d3c112b762JPG.jpg\"><\/p>\n<p>I remained blissfully unaware of the rampage unfolding as I soaked up the Caribbean sun <span>\u2013<\/span><b> <\/b>but within hours of returning from the beach I was left frantically scratching at my skin with a furious intensity.<\/p>\n<p>Unable to sleep, I spent the night progressing further and further into a black hole of Google diagnoses \u2013 with photos of Smallpox and rare tropical diseases leaving me anxious I would need to be raced to a hospital.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i2-prod.dailystar.co.uk\/incoming\/article31242568.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s615b\/0_fleas-in-the-sand.jpg\"><\/p>\n<p>After eventually figuring out the attack had been carried out by brutal sand fleas, I was left smothering on wave after wave of antihistamine and skin cream for over a week.<\/p>\n<p>So although Brits might be cursing the French for starting an outbreak of bedbugs, we should all count ourselves lucky that UK beaches remain free of Colombia\u2019s savage sand fleas.<\/p>\n<p><b><i>For more shocking stories from the Daily Star, make sure you sign up to one of our newsletters <\/i><\/b><b><i><u>here<\/u><\/i><\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Family<\/li>\n<li>Holidays<\/li>\n<li>Holidays from Hell<\/li>\n<li>Animals<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Source: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailystar.co.uk\/news\/world-news\/forget-bedbugs--savage-colombian-31241918\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Read Full Article<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Bookmark Get the best travel tips, advice and holiday deals Thank you for subscribing! Get the best travel tips, advice and holiday deals We have more newsletters Skin-crawling reports of bedbugs wreaking havoc across Paris have left worried Brits throwing out furniture amid a leap in infestations across the UK too. Councils have admitted to an \u2018alarming\u2019 rise in the [&#8230;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v21.8 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>\u2018Forget bedbugs \u2013 savage Colombian sand fleas left me fearing Smallpox was back\u2019 - lasixlineon.com<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/lasixlineon.com\/world-news\/forget-bedbugs-savage-colombian-sand-fleas-left-me-fearing-smallpox-was-back\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"\u2018Forget bedbugs \u2013 savage Colombian sand fleas left me fearing Smallpox was back\u2019 - lasixlineon.com\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Bookmark Get the best travel tips, advice and holiday deals Thank you for subscribing! 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