Jumping jellyfish leaps aboard boat and stings a man, sending him to the hospital

As far as tall tales go, this one's a whopper.

A crew man who decided to do a spot of fishing over the side of a towering bulk carrier off north Queensland has been stung by a tiny Irukandji jellyfish flung skywards from the sea below.

A spray of seawater carried the jellyfish 25 metres up, hitting the man as he stood on the deck and leaving him with a nasty sting.

"This is one of the most fascinating tasks I've worked on," said air crewman Geoff Abrahams, who aided the response of the RACQ CQ Rescue helicopter on Sunday.

"Realistically, what are the chances of being stung by a jellyfish when you are safely on board a bulk carrier 25 metres above the water. It's really incredible."

The helicopter landed on the bulk carrier, Konmax, and flew the man to Mackay Base Hospital, where tests confirmed he'd been stung by the jellyfish.

via Jumping jellyfish leaps aboard boat - Yahoo!7 News.