An unexpected attack from swarms of venomous wasps killed two American tourists, a father and his son, during a zip-lining trip in Laos. The attack occurred on October 15 but was publicly reported earlier this week.
A source close to U.S. diplomats in Laos told The Times of London that the hornets overwhelmed Daniel and Cooper Owen as they descended from a tree at Green Jungle Park, an eco-adventure resort near the city of Luang Prabang. The pair, still conscious, was quickly transferred to a clinic and then to the provincial hospital for emergency attention. However, they died a few hours following their arrival at the hospital.
The park expressed condolences for the victims while noting that the attack “was an unforeseeable and extraordinary natural occurrence,” it told The New York Times. It added that officials have since reviewed its safety measures and “further enhanced aspects of our emergency response protocols, including the evacuation process for the zip-line course.”
What happened?
Asian giant hornets are among the largest hornets in the world. Their stings can inject a deadly neurotoxin that can be fatal, and they are known to react aggressively to perceived threats, landing them the nickname “murder hornets.” They’re native to parts of Asia but have spread across the world in the past few years, including—for a short stint—the United States.
As the park’s statement states, attacks from these insects aren’t impossible but rare. Still, a bad run-in with the fiercely protective wasps can be extremely dangerous.
“Their whole bodies were covered in red spots. It was very, very painful. A lot of stings, more than 100, over the whole body,” Phanomsay Phakan, a doctor at the clinic where the Owens were first treated, told The Times. “I thought already that it’s a very dangerous situation because I had never seen it as bad as that.”
“The son was unconscious and passed away after half an hour, while the father was conscious and passed away about three hours later,” said Jorvue Yianouchongteng, the emergency room physician who attended to the pair, to The Associated Press. “We tried our best to save them but we couldn’t.”
Yianouchongteng added that both patients had been stung more than 100 times and suffered severe anaphylactic shock. However, they have yet to determine the exact cause of death.
Daniel Owen, 47, was originally from Idaho but had been working as the director of QSI International School in Vietnam. Cooper, 15, was a student at the school, which released a statement in memoriam of the victims.
“Dan dedicated 18 years to QSI, serving in five different schools and touching countless lives with his warmth, leadership, and unwavering commitment to education,” the statement read. “He was deeply loved across our community and will be profoundly missed. Our sincere condolences go out to the Owen family and all who knew and loved them.”
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