Three brothers are hospitalized in Bolivia after letting lethal black widow spider bite them because they wanted to become Spider-Man
- Brothers aged 8, 10, and 12 came across the Black Widow while goat herding
- They prodded the venomous spider with a stick until it bit all three of them
- They were taken to a medical centre before being transferred to hospital
Three brothers in Bolivia were hospitalised after letting a Black Widow spider bite them because they wanted to be Spider-Man.
The boys, aged 8, 10, and 12, were herding goats in the town of Chayanta, in the Andean region of Potosi when they came across the spider.
Hoping to turn into their comic book hero, they approached the Black Widow and prodded it with a stick on May 14, until it bit each of them in turn, epidemiology chief at the Bolivian Ministry of health, Virgilio Pietro, told local outlet Telemundo.
The boys, aged 8, 10, and 12, approached the Black Widow and prodded it with a stick on May 14 (Stock image)
The boys started experiencing symptoms within a few minutes and their concerned mother rushed them to a local health center where their conditions continued to worsen and they were taken to a hospital in Llallagua.
The next day they were transferred to the Children’s Hospital in La Paz, where they were admitted with fever, tremours, sweating and muscular pain, Pietro said.
The boys were successfully treated at the hospital and were able to be discharged a week later.
Pietro said the incident should be taken as a warning that ‘for children everything is real, movies are real’.
The boys were hoping to turn into their comic book hero, Spider-Man. Pietro said the incident should be taken as a warning that ‘for children everything is real, movies are real’
A bite from a Black Widow spider can cause varying symptoms and can prove fatal to young children.
Their venom affects the nervous system and can immediately cause pain, burning and swelling, as well as longer-term symptoms such as stiff and sore muscles, nausea, abdominal pain, swollen eyelids and weakness or tremours.
The spiders are native to North America, South America, and southern Europe. They are also found in Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa.