Empasis mine. I usually try not to 'editorialise' the press items, however this one just has so many ... well, you'll see for yourself! respects Wes



WCBS (New York, New York) 23 September 06 Python Snake On The Loose At Long Island School

Hauppauge, N.Y. (CBS/AP): N.Y. Students at a Long Island school have more than the three R's to deal with these days.

They're hunting for a reptile running loose.

The 2-foot snake name is Slim, a ball python who escaped from its tank in the sixth-grade science room. The snake had been a pet inside the room for five years at Hauppauge Middle School.

On Tuesday, teachers were putting Slim and another snake named Otis back into their containers when a student with a problem in the hall distracted them for a few moments.

"The calculating snakes took this as an opportunity to make a break for it," principal Maryann Fletcher explained to parents in a letter.

Otis was caught. Slim was not.

Pythons, cold-blooded serpents native to West Africa, are not generally dangerous. If afraid, they usually roll themselves into a ball.

Still, the principal promised that the school is "making every effort to locate the snake." To entice the critter, the school has set up heating lamps and traps filled with crickets.


Python Snake On The Loose At Long Island School

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