Carry a bandage, call an ambulance and stay completely still: Expert reveals his top tips for surviving a deadly snake bite
- Snake expert Stuart McKenzie says there will be more snakes around in summer
- People are advised to put pressure on snake bite area and call ambulance
- Most common snakes in Australia are eastern brown and Tiger snake
A reptile expert has revealed the best ways to keep safe from snakes during summer, and how to treat a bite if you are attacked.
Snakes come out of hibernation as the weather gets warmer – and about 100 types of Australian serpents are venomous.
Stuart McKenzie from Sunshine Coast Snake Catchers said as summer approaches Australians can expect to see more venomous reptiles around, such as the deadly eastern brown snake.
Snake expert, Stuart McKenzie reveals that the best thing to do in the event of a snake bite is to put pressure on the area and stay still (pictured: Eastern Brown snake)
‘Every snake should be treated as dangerous,’ Mr McKenzie told Daily Mail Australia.
‘We had one person who thought it was a harmless snake and got bitten and didn’t do anything about it, and they nearly died.’
Around 3,000 people are bitten by snakes every year.
Mr McKenzie said it was essential for victims to put pressure on the bite as soon as possible.
‘The basic concept is to get pressure on the bite sight and limb that was bitten,’ he said.
‘If you’re bitten on the fingers wrap the whole hand and arm in a pressure bandage.’
People are advised to stay still and to wait for medical attention to arrive.
People are advised to carry first aid or a bandage when outdoors during the summer months in case there are snakes around (pictured: Black Tiger snake)
‘Remain calm and still, and wait for the ambulance.’
‘As soon as you start moving you increase the venom moving around the body. Just stay where you are, it’s not worth moving because it could be the difference,’ he said.
The snake expert advised everyone to carry some form of first aid if they were going to be outdoors during the summer months.
‘It’s always best to carry first aid and to have a pressure bandage. That bandage could be the difference between life and death.’
A snake bite from an Eastern B rown snake if left untreated can kill a person in half an hour (pictured: snake bite on V8 racer Jamie Whincup from black-headed python)
Mr McKenzie said clothing could also be substituted as a bandage if a snake was to attack.
The most common snakes that Australians should be on the look out for are Eastern Brown snakes and Tiger snakes.
Both are extremely venomous with the brown snake being responsible for 60 per cent of snake related deaths in Australia.
Brown snakes are considered highly aggressive and a bite can kill in under half an hour if untreated.
Eastern brown snakes are found in in Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland.
Tiger snakes are found in southern areas in Western Australia, South Australia, New South Wales and Tasmania.
On average, there is one death from a Tiger snake bite every year.
Tiger snakes (pictured) are found in southern areas in Western Australia, South Australia, New South Wales and Tasmania and are responsible for one death every year