One sting from a box jelly fish can kill a man in three minutes. So it would seem impossible for a man to be stung five times and live to tell the tale!

New Zealand born Ian McCormack claims to have done just that. He will be visiting Bournemouth this month to tell his story of how he was scuba diving at night off the coast of Mauritius when he was stung by one of the most venomous creatures in the world. With no hope of an antidote, he was declared clinically dead after being stung by five deadly box jellyfish. This wasn’t the end, however. He claims to have come back to life just as the surgeon was about to perform the autopsy. While dead, Ian says he talked to God and told him: “There’s only one person that I want to go back for, and that is my mum. I want to tell her that what she believes is true, that there is a living God – and a heaven and hell.”

Ian says God sent him back to his mum and he was so deeply impacted by his experiences while dead, that he has travelled the world sharing his story. The visit to Bournemouth is being organised by St Andrew’s Church, Kinson.

The Reverend Pat Nesbitt, told me why he had invited Ian to the church.

He said: “What appeals to me so much about Ian is that he was in a hopeless situation and he found hope. There is a lot of hopelessness around in the world at the moment, but nothing can be more hopeless than being stung five times by a box jellyfish!”

Mr Nesbitt added: “I believe Ian’s story is genuine because I know a lot of people who can vouch for him. He has nothing to gain by making this up. Our own curate, the Rev Gary Neal, became a Christian through Ian and he was totally blown away with the love of God when he heard the story.”

Ian McCormack will tell how he relived the night he died at Oakmead College of Technology, Duck Lane on Wednesday, December 17, at 7pm.

Entry is free. For further information call 01202 570010.