Maine mom almost died after picking up 'beautiful' bug that triggered 'one in a million' allergic reaction
Niamh Shackleton
Featured Image Credit: WABI 5
A 44-year-old mom was left fighting for her life after picking up what she believed to have been a harmless bug.
Antoinette Webb recently went on a state park trip at Fort Knox with her young children when she stumbled across a 'beautiful' beetle.
Shortly after picking the tiny creature up, Webb said her whole body started burning up.
Speaking to WABI 5, Webb recalled: "A berry green, [most] beautiful beetle I’ve never seen. And I just picked him up and I said, ‘Woah you’re so pretty.’ And within seconds I felt burning through my body."
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She was with her nine-year-old twins, Ella and Jonah, when the flare up happened. Knowing that she wasn't well, Webb bolted up a grassy hill to the park's gift shop where she was received life-saving help from Dean Martin, executive director of Friends of Fort Knox.
As well as burning up, Webb's said to have broken out in hives and struggling to breathe, per New York Post.
Recalling what happened, Martin shared: "She’s lying there and I’m holding her hand and I’m talking to 9-1-1 and I’m holding her. She passes out because of a constricted airway, she’s got a lack of air. She’s got blue lips."
Another staffer named Alex also rushed to Webb's aid and the pair gave her Benadryl.
"That’s the best we had," Martin said of antihistamine. "And then we waited for the ambulance crews."
It turns out that Webb had picked up a six-spotted tiger beetle. The bug bit her, sparking an extremely rare allergic reaction.
Webb now credits Martin and his colleague's quick thinking for saving her life.
"I wouldn’t be alive today if it weren’t for them," she said. "They acted fast, they knew exactly what to do. I’m just so grateful, I’m just so grateful."
Webb went on: "If you guys come to Fort Knox, just know that you will be taken care of and your children will be taken care of."
People's reactions to a bug bite or sting can range from minor swelling to life-threatening anaphylaxis, says Cleveland Clinic.
Signs of an allergic reaction include:
Allergic reactions will typically kick in around 15 minutes after a person is bitten or stung. There have been instances of symptoms emerging up to six hours later, however.