A trip to a Maine historic site nearly turned fatal for a local mother after a chance encounter with a beetle triggered a severe medical emergency.
The Incident
Antoinette Webb, an Army veteran, was visiting Fort Knox in Prospect with her children when she picked up a brightly colored insect, reportedly a six-spotted tiger beetle. 'A berry green, beautiful beetle I’ve never seen,' Webb told WABI 5 News. 'And I just picked him up and I said, “Whoa, you’re so pretty.” And within seconds I felt burning through my body.'
After experiencing the initial symptoms, Webb climbed straight up a hill to the gift shop seeking help. Dean Martin, a former Army medic and executive director of the nonprofit Friends of Fort Knox, stepped in to assist as Webb’s condition deteriorated. 'She’s lying there and I’m holding her hand and I’m talking to 9-1-1 and I’m holding her,' Martin told the outlet. 'She passes out because of a constricted airway, she’s got a lack of air. She’s got blue lips.'
Emergency Response
Martin, his wife Sherry, and a staff member named Alex provided initial care and administered Benadryl until paramedics arrived. Webb later received four epinephrine shots at the hospital. The quick actions of the staff were crucial in stabilizing Webb until professional medical help could take over.
Emotional Reunion
Webb returned to the fort with her 9-year-old twins just a day later for an emotional reunion with the staff. 'I was just bawling,' Webb said. 'Because of you, they have their mom today. I just started crying, like right now. When I saw him, I immediately — I knew I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for him.'
Martin insisted he was not a hero, but Webb credited her survival to the staff’s military training and quick response. 'I wouldn’t be alive today if it weren’t for them,' Webb said. 'They acted fast, they knew exactly what to do. I’m just so grateful.'
