Hairdresser loses finger after spider bite in England

A hairdresser from Seaham had to have her finger amputated after catching a flesh-eating bug from a spider bite.

Andrea Wallace didn't even realise she had been bitten by the spider, barely a centimetre in size, until hours later when her hand started to swell.

An amputated finger, a six inch scar, fourteen operations and ten weeks in hospital, all brought about by a Steatoda Nobilis, or False Widow. It's distinctive shiny round body holds a poison that makes it the most venomous found in the UK.

The spider struck not in an area of unusual or dense vegetation, but in an open stretch of parkland close to the centre of Sunderland.

Andrea says she couldn't believe that lurking in the grass as she played with her children was something that could have easily killed her.

Fortunately, no one yet has ever been killed in Britain by a False Widow, though Andrea was close.

The advice if you're unlucky and do get a nasty reaction after a bite is to pack the swelling in ice and seek immediate medical attention.

For more information, read our fact article on false widow spiders: Click Here