AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION 11 December 13 Man survives bite from venomous death adder, one of the world's most deadly snakes
Authorities say a man rushed to Broome, in Western Australia's north, with a snake bite is believed to have been bitten by a desert death adder.
The snake is one of the world's most deadly varieties.
The man was bitten on Monday night at Port Smith, south of Broome.
Wildlife officer Matt Swan says a death adder bite is one of the worst type of snake bites.
"Death adders are in the top ten most venomous snakes in the world," he said.
"The bite is not painful but the after-effects are excruciating.
The victim was a man aged in his 40s, who was staying in Port Smith while doing contract work at the nearby Bidyadanga Aboriginal community.
He was kept in hospital overnight but has since been released.
The Department of Parks and Wildlife is warning that as temperatures heat up across the state, snakes will be on the move.
Mr Swan says people need to act quickly if someone is bitten.
"It's best applying appropriate first aid so a pressure bandage from the bite site out to the extremities of the limb back towards the heart and then another pressure bandage over that.
"Dial triple zero and wait for that urgent medical attention."
Mr Swan advises that if a snake bite occurs, the first thing to do is to get out of the snake's way.
"If you are bitten, the best thing you can do is make sure you are safe from that snake, so that might mean removing yourself from that area," he said.
"The medical staff around Western Australia now have some amazing test kits where they can actually test your blood or test the bite site so that if they do have to give you anti-venom they know exactly which one to use."
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