Pennsylvania Rattlesnake Bite: 39-Year-Old Man Dies After Rattlesnake Bites Him In Rural Area
A Pennsylvania rattlesnake bite has killed a 39-year-old man, making him the first person in 25 years to die from such a bite in the state. According to the New York Daily News, 39-year-old Russell Davis was at a rural camp in Medix Run when a rattlesnake bit him. After feeling the sharp bite, Davis ran to his girlfriend and told her that he needed to go to the hospital, but his condition quickly deteriorated.
Pennsylvania camper dies after being bitten by rattlesnake: http://t.co/TNnhZ9OOAE pic.twitter.com/tgVCvg8nsz
— NBC10 Philadelphia (@NBCPhiladelphia) July 19, 2015
Within minutes, Davis began to have “severe breathing problems.” His girlfriend was forced to stop the car at a local bar, and ran inside to call for help. When paramedics arrived, Davis was in “acute respiratory distress.” He was supposed to be flown to a hospital in Pittsburgh by helicopter, but died mid-flight.
“He’d been given anti-venom treatment before the flight, but went into full cardiac arrest mid-flight, forcing the helicopter to land at a hospital in Kittanning. He was pronounced dead there just before 5:30 a.m. Sunday.”
The Pennsylvania rattlesnake bite was extremely rare, but County Coroner Brian Myers said that Mr. Davis had an allergic reaction to the venom. According to HNGN, Davis’ cause of death was listed as “anaphylactic reaction to a venomous snake bite.”
As previously reported by the Inquisitr, rattlesnake bites aren’t too common and deaths from those bites are even more rare.
“According to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), between 7,000 and 8,000 people receive a venomous snakebite each year, and about five of those people die.”
A Pennsylvania rattlesnake bite is even less common. While the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources reports that these snakes are found in “heavily forested regions” of the state, they also say that the slithering creatures want nothing more than to be left alone.
“These amazing creatures are frequently misunderstood and feared. The truth is that they just want to be left in peace, are a beneficial part of the ecosystem and without them some of the wild character of our forests would be lost.”
It is unclear how Mr. Davis came in contact with the snake, but it was likely by accident. It is possible that he stepped on the snake without even realizing it was beneath his foot. The snakes tend to blend in very well with their surroundings.
[Photo by David McNew / Getty Images]
