Bluff snakebite victim put at risk after Facebook users misidentify Green Mamba

NewsSportLifestyleEntertainmentOpinionNewsBluff snakebite victim put at risk after Facebook users misidentify Green MambasnakebiteMonishka Govender|Published 15 minutes agoCopy to ClipboardAsk AIThe snake which which was posted on Facebook.

A snakebite victim was reportedly told he was not in danger after Facebook users wrongly identified a Green Mamba as a harmless species, prompting a search to get him urgent medical care.

The incident happened on the Bluff after a resident came across a homeless man who had killed a green snake.

The man was working at a property in the area when he was apparently bitten by the snake.

Concerned about the man, the resident the posted photographs of the snake on Facebook asking for its identification.

Several people comments and incorrectly identified it as a harmless Spotted Bush Snake.

Snake catcher Jason Arnold, known as “The Snake Man”, said he came across the post and immediately recognised the snake as a Green Mamba.

“I have been catching snakes and offering my professional services to the public for 27 years, since 1999,” Arnold told sundaytribune.co.za. 

“I immediately saw that the snake was a Green Mamba. I went to the comments section to make the positive identification and saw that several people had already opted, with their obviously poor knowledge of snakes, to incorrectly identify the snake as a harmless Spotted Bush Snake.”

Arnold said the original poster appeared to have accepted the incorrect identification and had already left Facebook.

“I immediately commented and informed the man that I am a snake expert and that the snake he posted was actually a highly venomous Green Mamba and that the bitten person should get to the hospital immediately,” he said.

When he received no response, Arnold attempted to contact the man privately through Facebook Messenger and then appealed to other group members for his contact details.

Two women who had seen Arnold’s warning joined the effort and eventually managed to find a telephone number for the original poster.

Arnold then contacted the resident, who revealed that the person bitten was a homeless man often seen in the area.

“I told him the resident the man needed urgent hospitalisation,” Arnold said.

But the damage caused by the incorrect identification had already been done.

The resident told Arnold that, after several Facebook users had identified the snake as harmless, he had reassured the bitten man that he was not in danger.

“The young man walked off with the assurance that he would be fine,” Arnold said.

The resident then drove around the Brighton Beach area trying to locate him but could not find him.

Arnold said the situation was particularly concerning because the man was homeless and could have deteriorated without anyone nearby to recognise the seriousness of his condition.

“In this situation, he could have died, especially since he was a homeless person without family and friends around where he’s staying, so people could see if something was starting to happen and get him to a medical facility,” he said.

Arnold warned that a serious Green Mamba bite could become life-threatening within hours.

“A Green Mamba bite is absolutely lethal if it is a full bite and a lot of venom is delivered. It can kill a person anywhere between about two hours up to about eight hours,” he said.

He said the venom could affect the respiratory system and muscles, eventually causing paralysis.

Fortunately, the missing man was later located at an Engen service station on Tara Road.

Community responders and CPF members received information that the man was at the garage and circulated the information to the groups.

They were able to locate him, assessed him and confirmed that he had been bitten on his forearm.

Arnold said there were two raised patches or lumps on the man’s arm and that he reported feeling ill and vomiting earlier.

Although the man appeared relatively well, Arnold said the swelling and vomiting were concerning symptoms following a suspected mamba bite.

“Due to the fact that he had swelling of the forearm and had vomited, both of which are typical symptoms of Mamba envenomation, I suggested very strongly that he go to the hospital and remain under observation until at least tomorrow morning,” Arnold said.

The man agreed to walk to nearby Wentworth Hospital and wait there, even if only in the waiting area, in case his condition deteriorated.

Arnold said symptoms following a mamba bite could sometimes be delayed.

“You can be experiencing absolutely nothing, and you are seemingly fine, and then a couple of hours after the bite, you all of a sudden start going downhill,” he said.

The man was later seen walking around without obvious difficulty, although Arnold did not know whether he had remained at the hospital as advised.

“He just got off extremely lightly,” Arnold said.

“There was definitely some envenomation, otherwise he would not have experienced any symptoms whatsoever, so that means that he just received a very mild envenomation from that snake.”

The incident has highlighted the dangers of relying on social media for snake identification, particularly in a region where several green snake species can look remarkably similar.

Arnold said Durban was home to several green snakes, including the Green Mamba, Boomslang, Spotted Bush Snake, Eastern Natal Green Snake, Western Natal Green Snake and Green Water Snake.

“Only the Green Mamba and the Boomslang are venomous. The rest are all completely harmless,” he said.

“But identification gets tricky because Green Mambas have no markings on their body, they are plain green. But so is the harmless Green Water Snake, also plain green.”

He said even experienced people could make mistakes without sufficient knowledge, particularly because some snakes can change appearance as they mature.

“Unless you really know your stuff and have been involved with snakes for many, many years, it is incredibly difficult to make a positive identification,” Arnold said.

He urged the public not to rely on comments from strangers on Facebook or neighbourhood groups when dealing with potentially venomous snakes.

“People cannot take anybody’s word for gospel. You have to make sure that whoever you get your identification from is actually someone reputable who really knows what he or she is doing,” he said.

Arnold said even a short delay caused by an incorrect identification could prove fatal.

“In cases where the bite is from something like a Green Mamba or a Black Mamba, the person already has a very limited time to get medical treatment,” he said.

“Even if 20 minutes was wasted because somebody made an incorrect identification, and so the person stayed at home for that amount of time, even that 20 minutes wasted could be a matter of life and death.”

He also warned people not to attempt to kill the snake after a bite in an effort to take it to the hospital.

Most importantly, he said, anyone bitten by a snake should seek medical attention immediately rather than waiting for symptoms.

He advised residents to take a photograph or video of a snake from a safe distance if possible, while maintaining visual contact with it until a professional snake catcher arrives.

“It is very important to keep an eye on the snake. You do not have to stand hovering over it. Stand where you are well away from it, and where the snake is not feeling threatened by your presence.”

The Bluff incident, Arnold said, demonstrated just how quickly a well-intentioned attempt to help through social media could go wrong.

“What happened here shows why people should not rely on general neighbourhood watch groups, security groups or Facebook for positive snake identification,” he said.

“You have people offering an opinion when they have absolutely no idea. They have no experience, they do not work with snakes for a living, they have probably never caught a snake in their life, and they think, for some reason, that they can identify snakes.”

While the man’s eventual discovery provided some relief, Arnold said the incident could easily have ended differently.

“I am relieved that he has been found but it could have turned out really badly.”