Single Dad Blinded, Dog Killed By Toxic Coral On Saltwater Rock

MERIDIAN, ID — When Tony Arellano bought a new fish tank a few weeks ago, he didn't have enough saltwater rock needed to grow beneficial bacteria and turn it into an aquarium. He turned to Facebook, and found someone willing to sell him 60 pounds of rocks.

The rocks had corals on them. They were dead, Arellano was told, and they'd stay that way, too.

But the corals were alive. And they released a toxic chemical into the water and air.

The chemical left the single father from Meridian, Idaho — just west of Boise — blind in in his right eye. His daughter was sickened by the substance. His dog was killed.

In a GoFundMe campaign created to help Arellano raise thousands of dollars in medical bills, the mechanic says he is just the 10th reported case in the world of palytoxin from a saltwater coral infecting the eye. Doctors say he has to wait for half a year and simply hope his eyesight returns.

Bill Knight, owner of Fish Aquariums and Stuff in Boise, told KTVB-TV the coral is not un common.

“One particular coral that is extremely toxic it is called Palythoas,” he told the TV station. “Some species are a lot more toxic than others, some are very inert and do not hurt you.”

It isn't easy to figure out how toxic a specific coral is, though he told the station. It should be handled with care.

“Never touch it, never try to scrub it off of a rock, never, like especially never, try to boil it or even run hot water over it,” he told the station.

Any of those activities could trigger the toxin.

Arellano says he wasn't "entirely new to the saltwater scene," but he had no idea there were such dangers with corals and toxins when he first bought the rock, took it home and introduced it to his tank.

"When I was placing the rock into the tank I accidentally cut my hand on one of the rocks," he writes in the post. "I didn't think to much of it that night..."

The following morning, his daughter woke him up in a panic. Her dog was cold to the touch and was hardly breathing. They rushed the animal to the humane society. Tests showed her colon was releasing her intestines. Doctors kept her there to stabilize her and prep her for surgery.

It was around that time when Arellano itched his right eye with his hand — the same one with the cut. A half-hour later, he went to an emergency hospital. His right eye turned bloodshot. He was in a great deal of pain and he couldn't see out of it.

Three hours later, as he was leaving the hospital, his phone rang. The dog had died.

He returned to the vet and learned she may have ingested some of the rock crumbs that he had bought.

As he was leaving the vet, Arellano's eye had swollen shut. He returned to the emergency room and doctors said he needed to see an eye doctor. The next day, after having trouble waking, he tried waking his oldest daughter. She, too, was struggling to wake up.

The two both had to visit the ER. Both were found to have high levels of carbon monoxide in their blood. She was later released, but Arellano was transferred to the intensive care unit and quarantined. He was having trouble breathing, and doctors from various agencies visited him in what looked like hazmat suits, he writes. He remained hospitalized for three days.

"It was determined that the rock that I got had corals that were not entirely dead and released palytoxin into the water and air," he says. "The palytoxin was in my hand and when I rubbed my eye it essentially made me blind in my right eye."

Nearly all of his cornea was damaged and he had "little to no chance" of seeing his vision return. Arellano says he hasn't been able to work in weeks.

"Being a mechanic it's hard working with one eye," he writes.

Now, he's trying to appeal to the kindness of friends, family and strangers for help. Eye doctors say Arellano should wait up to six months to see if anything improves. If not, he might have to undergo eye surgery to transfer stem cells from his left to his right eye. Or possibly cataract surgery.

The ordeal has taken its toll on Arellano. He is almost at the point of "giving up," he writes.

"I'm hoping people can help me out in anyway[.] I want to be able to see out of both eyes and not just one," he says.

Late Saturday, Arellano wrote that he began to feel a "stabbing pain" in the corner of his eye. It turned a dark red color again. He might have to return to the eye center again this week, which doesn't reopen until Tuesday.

As of Sunday afternoon, the GoFundMe account had raised about $1,900 of his $20,000 goal.

If you'd like to donate to Arellano, you can do so here.

Warning: Some photos on the GoFundMe page are graphic.

Photo credit: GoFundMe