PUYALLUP, Wash. - Five people stung by wasps over the holiday weekend were admitted to the Intensive Care Unit at Puyallup's Good Samaritan Hospital.
Since the holiday, Devin Anglemyer's been spending a lot of time at Puyallup's Good Samaritan Hospital, visiting his 47-year-old brother, who remains in intensive care after being stung 4-5 times by a wasp.
His family can't believe it.
"He's been stung a lot of times and never had an allergic reaction, never," said Anglemyer.
After Pierce County paramedics took five people to the hospital, suffering from serious allergic reactions to wasp stings, the health district was alerted.
But a state entomologist determined the wasps likely responsible were ordinary wasps that just happened to sting people who had not had allergic reactions before.
Doctors say that is entirely possible.
"It's quite likely to have first presentation of anaphylactic shock in a person who had previous exposure because they become sensitized in some way," said Dr. J.D. Fitz
The Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department wants to use the string of dangerous stings as a warning for wasp victims to seek help if something doesn't seem right.
"If you start to show symptoms other than that pain and some localized swelling, if you see some hives and have difficulty breathing, hit 911 and get some help right away," said Joby Winans, Tacoma-Pierce County Health Dept.
Devin Anglemyer says he'll never look at bees or wasps the same again.
"I know that he only got stung 4-5 times, and he's on a ventilator," he said.
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