EAST RIDGE (WRCB) - A man trying to determine whether a copperhead was a male of female died after the snake bit him on Saturday night.

Emergency crews got the call just after 8:00 p.m. and rushed to a home on Blanton Drive. Firefighters and police officers found 26-year-old Wade Westbrook with a bite above the right elbow.

A friend had brought the snake over to Westbrook in a plastic container. At some point Westbrook wanted to investigate the gender of the snake. That's when the snake struck him.

It is unclear how much time passed between the bite and when firefighters arrived. But paramedics with Lifeguard EMS began CPR after their arrival on the scene.

Mr. Westbrook was transported to Erlanger Medical Center where he was pronounced dead by medical staff.

East Ridge Animal Control also responded to the scene to take possession of the snake.

Death from a snake envenomation in North America is extremely rare. In the year 2005, only 6 deaths from snakebites were reported to the American Association of Poison Control Centers.
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