The search is underway for an escaped eight-foot cobra in Orlando, Florida.
According to the WESH , the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission announced that a king cobra, nearly 10-foot long, escaped from its owner in the Orlando area on Tuesday, September 1. The snake’s owner, Mike Kennedy, who is licensed and bonded to care for exotic animals, reported the reptile missing on Wednesday.
The venomous cobra was somehow able to maneuver its way out of his cage where it lived with his owner at 4858 North Apopka Vineland Road in Orlando. Capt. Chris Roszkowiak, of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, said it was obvious that the cobra was not intentionally let loose in the wild. They believe the snake will not venture too far away from its home, which is located in a densely wooded area.
“Most likely nobody is going to see it,” Roszkowiak explained, according to Central Florida News . “We believe it’s going to stay on the property here, which is a heavily wooded area. But on the remote chance it does leave this area and if someone does see it, please call our number so we can try to recapture the snake. But please do not approach it, don’t corner it or let any animals at it.”
To possess a king cobra, an owner must first be granted a permit, and they are required to report any missing animals immediately.
Kennedy is an exotic animal dealer and the star of the Discovery Channel’s reality show Airplane Repo. He described the reptile as being eight-foot long and green and yellow in color. According to officials, Kennedy could face penalties because he did not immediately report the snake missing.
Orlando officers and staff members with the Conservation Commission are actively searching for the cobra that currently has Orlando residents on edge.
“We are moving all outside activities, including P.E. and recess, inside. And we will be relocating our portable classrooms into the main building,” Clarcona Elementary School Principal Robert Strenth said in a voice message he sent to the student’s parents.
“They need to do something about these types of animals around the schools,” said parent LeRoy Bell. “It’s troubling. If I [didn’t have] to pick my son up today, I was going to come down and get him anyway.”
“I’m going to go load my guns. Well, they’re already loaded, but I’m going to have them ready for sure. I mean, that thing’s big enough to take you down for sure,” James McLeod, a resident who lives near where the snake escaped, said.
[Photo via Shutterstock]
