TOWNSVILLE BULLETIN (Australia) 03 May 06 It's snake bite city (Leonie Johnson)
Snakes have bitten three Townsville people in the past week.
Yesterday Roseneath resident Denise Bray was inspecting a house for sale when she suddenly felt a sharp pain in her foot.
"I actually thought I'd stood on a big prickle or something," she said.
"It wasn't until I saw it slither away that I realised I had been bitten. It really hurt."
She was following a real estate agent into the Minehane St, Cluden, yard when she was bitten by a tiger snake. Ms Bray quickly jumped in her car and drove herself to the hospital.
"My first reaction was getting to the hospital," she said.
"Living out at Roseneath I was always prepared to drive myself to the hospital.
"I drive an automatic car so I didn't have to use my foot but once I got out of my car and on my feet it hit me and I passed out in the car park."
She managed to utter the word 'snake' to passersby before she lost consciousness.
Snakes are a part of everyday life for Ms Bray, who lives on acreage at Roseneath.
"I've just learnt to live with snakes. I always keep the grass short and take the dogs with me and make a lot of noise when I go somewhere where I think snakes will be. I've seen more snakes in the past six weeks than in the past 13 years I've been out there.
"You just don't think that when you walk into a residential area in Townsville that you're going to be bitten by a snake. I don't know if I'll be buying the house now."
Last Sunday a 79-year-old man was taken to hospital after being bitten on the finger while along Hervey Range Rd.
Last Friday a five-year-old boy had a snake climb into bed with him and bite him at Woodstock.
Heatley-based snake catcher Brian West said he was one of several snake catchers in the twin cities. He had caught about eight snakes during the past month, including a taipan at Lavarack Barracks.
Townsville Hospital emergency department staff specialist Dr Carl O'Kane said there had been 13 suspected snake bites, two from deadly snakes, in the past month.
It's snake bite city