Australian man went to remove snake from childcare centre, later died from snakebite

An Australian man died on Tuesday (Mar 19) after he was bitten by a venomous snake as he tried to save a family member. The incident happened in Queensland as the man tried to remove an Eastern Brown Snake from a childcare centre. The man suffered a cardiac arrest after he was bitten multiple times on his left arm by the snake known as the second most venomous snake in the world.

An investigation was launched into the matter after it was discovered that Jerromy Brookes, 47, was not a professional snake catcher. It was not clear why he attempted the removal. “Workplace Health and Safety Queensland (WHSQ) is investigating an incident that occurred at a business in Townsville,” a spokesperson was quoted as saying by 7NEWS.com.au.

“As this is a current investigation, WHSQ is not able to provide further information at this time,” the statement added.

According to a report by People, the man drove back to his home in Deeragun with the snake in his bag and he wanted to tell his wife about the incident. But he became unconscious after reaching home. The wife tried to save his life by bandaging his arm and performing CPR but to no avail.

Later, paramedics were called in and Brookes was rushed to Townsville University Hospital in critical condition, where he later died that evening.

The Queensland acting director of the Townsville district, Paula Marten, later cautioned people through media that if one is not aware of the snake, they should consider it venomous and act accordingly.

“When you’re bitten by a snake and you’re not aware of snakes, treat them as if they are venomous,” Marten said, per the Cairns Post. “It’s really important that you stay calm and keep the person calm,” Marten added.

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She also urged people bitten by snakes to apply basic first aid and immobilise the bite with compression bandages.

“The venom basically disrupts your clotting cascade at a very elevated rate, but while it's doing that it is also damaging blood vessels, impacting blood pressure, which can result in a collapse in some cases," said Timothy Jackson, an evolutionary toxicologist at Melbourne University Australian Venom Research Unit, per ABC Australia.

(With inputs from agencies)