Kayaker survives snake bite

[hkestler]

I know there are fellow yak fishermen (and women) on this board*so I thought I would post this. I think the lesson is good for all - pay attention to your surroundings.

*


NASHVILLE, TN (WSMV) -
If you want to know what it feels like to be bitten by a water moccasin twice, Bellevue resident Tim Ward can tell you.

"I lifted my arm up with the snake still attached. The pain was pretty severe. It felt like my fingers were being crushed in a vise. It hurt," Ward said.

Ward likes to kayak the Buffalo River. On a run July 2, he and a friend had just finished taking a break on the river bank.

He reached for his paddle without looking, and that's when the snake bit his right hand and then his left.

Ward said when he got the 18-inch snake off his finger, he took his paddle and killed the snake with it.

Ward had studied snakes as a kid. He knew it was important to stay calm, relax, and slow his heart rate; so he got in the cool river water. As he floated, he said, he didn't think about dying.

"I'd never been bitten by a poisonous snake. I didn't want to die in the Buffalo River. But I refused to let it enter my mind that it was even a possibility," Ward said.

His friend called 911. The kayak rental place sent a boat to pick up Ward; an ambulance was waiting. Ward was airlifted to Vanderbilt, where he was given several doses of anti-venom. He stayed in the intensive care unit for four days, and spent another two days in a regular room before being discharged.

Ward said there may be some permanent damage to his left hand. He may need skin grafts.

He has a warning for other people. When you're in the wild, watch where you're walking and* reaching; there could be a snake.

"They're there. A lot of people don't realize it, but they're there," Ward said.

"It was a careless mistake; one I will never make again."

[Reel Tune]

Great reminder especially this time of year. Spiders, snakes, and other boaters can all pose a danger, and it is up to you to be very aware of your surroundings and how quickly they can change. I hope Mr. Ward has a full and speedy recovery. It's also a good thing to carry a First Aid Kit in all boats and kayaks alike, and in that First Aid kit it's a good idea to carry a Snake Bite Kit.

[RiverShoes]

Man... That's crazy. I see snakes on the water from time to time when I'm wading. But never thought about that sorta thing. Eeek. I usually am very aware of where I step.

[RiverShoes]

So, I guess my next question is this.... What all kind of poisunous snakes are out there in TN? I know there are water moccasin, and rattle snakes, what else? And out in the water, what are their behaviors? When and where would you find them?

[txnative]

My best advice is to leave all snakes alone. Snakes are protected under TN law. I know this because i'm in the pest control industry and the ag dept tells us this every time someone asks. Treat all snakes as if they're venomous and give them room.

That said, should you be bitten, a telltale sign of venomous snakes is a triangular head. Water moccasins, copperheads, and rattlers all share this trait. Another trait of all three is vertical, cat-like pupils...but if you just got bit and try to get close enough to see a snakes pupils, you deserve to get bit again. Don't try to play "hero" and kill a snake if you think it might be dangerous, this is a good way to put yourself in danger...and it's illegal, anyways. Give 'em space and you have no reason to worry if a snake is venomous since you're out of harm's way.


Chris

[JoelO]

I've seen copperheads....never seen a rattler although I know there out there. Looks like the water moccasin range is creeping toward Nashville from the west...from what I heard, they are the more temperamental of the 3.

[skillet]

When I was a kid (14-19yrs old), I would catch rattlers and I had three tanks with king snakes in them. I'd put the rattler in a tank and 8/10 times the king snake would kill the rattler. I lived in a community that had two ponds in it, one you could only fish one side, the other side was heavily grown up
Anyways we got a Jon boat and fished the ponds heavily, seeing copperheads and cotton mouths all the time. The most amazing thing I saw was a "ball" of cotton mouths mating. There had to have been 40-50 of them. We saw alot of swirling in the water so we eased over to check it out and that's what we saw. I've never seen it since. Somebody mentioned their temper, well lets just say keep your distance. I've Bennett chased off the water numerous times and been chased off a boat once. We pulled the trolling motor up and there it was. We were probably 8-10 ft from the bank and my feet didn't get wet. Don't know how that happened.

[lilmule]

I often wonder how yakers can paddle around in many places as often the cottonmouth wants to rest in my bassboat splashwell.Have to shoo them out ,with rod or paddle.
As for types virtual smorgasboard,copperhead,timber rattler and pygmy rattler in the trace and lbl,and the canebrake in west tn.
West tn and just above in ky contain the highest populations of cottonmouths in the world with Murphies pond ky tops,thats just above Reelfoot and the end of the obion watershed chain which extends a long ways to Paris and slightly beyond.
Murphies pond the stats are unreal something like one every 200 sq ft.
If seen best to leave alone,and avoid,as a younger individual in W.Va was taught to step over sticks on the trail,and have looked back and seen I had stepped over a copperhead once then knew why.
Venomous snakes have a vertical eye pupil but best to leave all alone.

[drrxnupe]

I was working the day he was flown in and helped prepare his Crofab doses (antivenom). He's a very lucky dude.

Had it been me, I probably would have been sent to the cardiac unit to be treated for my massive heart attack:eek:

[bd-]

The snakebites to both hands make me wonder. I'm probably just excessively cynical. But it's just so common that snakebites occur when someone is trying to catch or handle the snake. This is especially true for snakebites to the hands, and especially especially true when the victim is a young male. I can see getting bit on one hand while reaching for a paddle, but for the life of me I can't figure out how you'd get bit on both hands while reaching for it. I don't think I've ever picked up a paddle with both hands at once, at least not with my hands right close together where they'd both be in reach of a small snake at the same time.

It just makes me wonder.

bd

[Catchingtrout]

Beer, BD it's the Beer.:D

[tkwalker]

I often wonder how yakers can paddle around in many places as often the cottonmouth wants to rest in my bassboat splashwell.Have to shoo them out ,with rod or paddle.
As for types virtual smorgasboard,copperhead,timber rattler and pygmy rattler in the trace and lbl,and the canebrake in west tn.
West tn and just above in ky contain the highest populations of cottonmouths in the world with Murphies pond ky tops,thats just above Reelfoot and the end of the obion watershed chain which extends a long ways to Paris and slightly beyond.
Murphies pond the stats are unreal something like one every 200 sq ft.
If seen best to leave alone,and avoid,as a younger individual in W.Va was taught to step over sticks on the trail,and have looked back and seen I had stepped over a copperhead once then knew why.
Venomous snakes have a vertical eye pupil but best to leave all alone.

The reason the snakes are in your splashwell is because of the heat of the motor, it is an attractor !! ... as an OLD Tourney and Pro fisherman for 40 years ....Night and Day ... that is what attracts them ; You should have been with Dillon Mitchener and I back in the 70's in Middle Fla. ...we only fished at night !! But then we caught 10 to 15 pound bass, you can't do that in this day in time .... ... Snakes Like HEAT !!! they are cold blooded you know :eek: <'TK><

[tnridgerunner]

B. D., you're right to be suspicious. This does seem to be a reasonable explanation as reported by the Tennessean's Anne Paine, who is a very accomplished outdoor person and a careful reporter:

"When ready to leave, Ward reached to pick up his paddle. He was talking and looking back at his friend.
“I felt something brush my knuckles and thought it was some vegetation or twigs.”
He changed hands and reached with his left hand, still not looking, and felt a sharp pang.
“When I lifted up my hand, surprise, there was a snake attached to it,” he said, holding up his bandaged member.
He grabbed the snake behind the head and pried it off, flinging it to the ground. He hit it with his paddle out of frustration, he said, killing it. He told Greek to call 911 and sat down in the cool river water to stay calm, as excruciating pain began to set in.
“It felt like someone crushing my fingers in a vise,” he said.
A canoe and kayak outfitter sent a powerboat down the river to pick them up and take them to an ambulance. From there Ward was rushed to a helipad where Air Evac took him to Vanderbilt.
Ward reported that a cottonmouth had bitten him, but Vanderbilt’s Williams said she didn’t need to know that. From the swelling and the tissue beginning to break down, it was obviously a poisonous bite — on both hands.
Bite victim may need skin grafts

Antivenin, which stops venom from continuing to damage tissue, was administered. The same antidote works for any poisonous Tennessee snake (http://www.tnherpsociety.org/) because they’re all pit vipers. Both of Ward’s arms swelled, and he needed surgery during his weeklong hospital say.

[Catchingtrout]

The following was sent to me by a resident of Hoenwald,TN earlier this week. I am not saying I believe the story, but here it is.



To all my friends who go out on the land..........


Egads, it's head is bigger than a man's hand. I got this warning from a rancher friend who lives near Woodbury (less than an hour from Hohenwald) . Heed this advice!!





Ya'll need to forget about those itty, bitty snake-proof boots and
find yourself a full snake-proof SUIT.., AND HAT!!!
My fellow friends and family,

We have killed 57 rattlesnakes on two separate ranches this year.

24 @Locke Creek & 33 @ Halls Hill, since mid-May. Not one has buzzed!

We provoked one fair sized boy with a stick and he coiled & struck at

the stick a couple of times before he buzzed up and rattled. The purpose

of this explanation is that I have been hearing the same from fellow ranchers

and hunters in regards to the lack of warning with rattlesnakes.

I had lunch with a friend today and he offered a theory about the fact that

these buggers aren't rattling anymore He raised pigs for years and reported

that when he would hear a rattlesnake buzzing in the sow pen, the sows

would bee line to it and fight over the snake. For the uninformed, pigs love

to eat rattlesnakes.. Therefore, the theory is they are ceasing to rattle to

avoid detection, since there are plenty of pigs roaming the countryside.



I have a neighbor ranching lady who was bitten 3 weeks ago 2 times by

the same snake without any warning....she spent 5 days in ICU, after

22 vials of anti-venom she is back at the ranch and still may lose her

foot or worse yet her lower leg.

The days of perceived warning are over. Keep your boots on and use

a light when out and about. As you all know, one can pop up just about anywhere!

You may wish to forward this to anyone that would be interested.

The ranch where this big rattler was killed is outside the city of Woodbury

which is located in (Middle Tennessee) near Readyville .

Seems there's been a boom in the snake population there.

[JoelO]

Catchingtrout,

That story has been going around the internet for a bit. The locations get changed depending on who's receiving the story. You can see them discuss it under urban legends at about.com

http://urbanlegends.about.com/od/snakes/a/Rattlesnakes-Not-Rattling.htm

[Turkeyhunter_2008]

""We have killed 57 rattlesnakes on two separate ranches this year.

24 @Locke Creek & 33 @ Halls Hill, since mid-May. Not one has buzzed!

We provoked one fair sized boy with a stick and he coiled & struck at

the stick a couple of times before he buzzed up and rattled.""


It's a shame that, assuming any of these story's about killing many or a giant snake are true, that we never see a good follow up story in the newspapers or on the Internet with the headline of " Men Who Killed 57 Rattlesnakes Charged, Department of Fish and Wildlife Investigating, More Charges Pending"
I'm not too keen on the idea of people killing them just because they are there.

[clean air]

They dont get that big in our area.I live in coffee and have hunted alot in cannon on farms and the mnts.and never seen anything close to that.That thing must have got hit with gamma rays to make it the hulks pet snake.

[bd-]

Yeah, I think that rattlesnake story has been on Snopes for a long time. You can't believe much of what you read on the Internet.

Besides, that snake is an eastern diamondback. There's not a single eastern diamondback anywhere within 300 miles of Cannon County. There might be some timber rattlers but they don't look anything like the snake in the picture.

bd