A tragic incident occurred on Friday at All Hands Beach in Subic when a five-year-old girl, Kiera Maningdin, died after being stung by a jellyfish while swimming with her mother.
Jahaziel Michaellie Maningdin recounted that she and her daughter were enjoying the shallow waters when they were both stung by jellyfish. “I immediately lifted my daughter from the water and saw the tentacles still attached to her,” Maningdin said. She called for help, and a bystander applied vinegar to the sting sites.
The situation quickly worsened as Kiera lost consciousness after the vinegar was applied. She briefly regained consciousness during the drive to Allied Care Experts Medical Center-Baypoint Hospital within the Subic Bay Freeport.
Maningdin expressed her dissatisfaction with the resort’s lack of emergency preparedness, noting the absence of an emergency vehicle to transport them promptly to medical care. “My child needed emergency monitoring as she had low oxygen levels and was holding her breath,” she said.
Upon arriving at the hospital, Maningdin described the medical staff as seemingly unsure of how to handle the emergency. “They first gave my child an IV but did not monitor her oxygen levels. She was in critical condition, yet the staff kept leaving us alone,” she stated. Concerns about whether Kiera could drink water went unanswered by the staff.
“During that time, Kiera became unconscious after being poured with vinegar. She regained her consciousness during the drive to the hospital,” Maningdin added.
“Pagdating namin sa emergency room, gising siya at namimilipit sa sakit. Kailangan ng emergency monitoring dahil mababa ang oxygen level at nagpipigil siya ng hininga. Hindi ako nasiyahan sa kung paano nila hinarap ang sitwasyon,” she said.
Kiera eventually vomited, which prompted further medical intervention. “Afterwards, we heard that she needed to be suctioned. They told us to leave and intubated her,” Maningdin added.
According to reports, this is not the first jellyfish incident at the resort. Maningdin’s primary lament is that the resort was not equipped to handle such life-threatening emergencies.