UPDATE:
Blogger Randy Bilesky said he saw European fire ants, in Ladner near Cove Reach off Admiral and two in Tsawwassen, one near 13th Ave and one near Cliff Drive in ground nests.
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Now that the fire ants have made their way to Delta, I thought I would put together some tips on how to deal with fire ant stings.
If you are sure that it was a fire ant that stung you, as you may have stood on top of one of their nests, the first thing to do is cool down the affected area, wash it with soap, realize you're at risk, perhaps take an antihistamine and anti-inflammatory medication, rest and also make sure someone else is nearby.
It’s recommended that you should rest for 20 to 30 minutes immediately after the sting and look out for any changes in physical condition.
The venom that fire ants releases can in some rare cases triggers a severe allergic reaction known as anaphylaxis. This then lead to symptoms such as body rash, breathing problems, reduced blood pressure and reduced consciousness, within an hour or even minutes.
Fire ant venom is similar to those of bee venom, so if you are allergic to bee venom should be particularly careful. In the case of anaphylactic shock, an adrenaline auto-injector or epipen is used to inject adrenaline intramuscularly.
