14 DAY TRIAL // As unusual as it sounds, a man was attacked by the snake he killed with its own hands, 45 minutes after the incident. Pretty impressive, that reptile must have had a strong will in order to get revenge on the man who sliced it with a shovel.
Jake Thomas was volunteering in a cemetery in Werris Creek, near Tamworth, mowing the lawn, when he noticed a red-bellied black snake in a headstone vase. Concerned about the safety of unaware people who come to visit their loved ones in the graveyard, he decided to kill the reptile.
He used his shovel to cut the snake in half and then continued to do his job around the area for almost one hour. After finishing his work, he came back to dispose of the dead snake's remains and was shocked to end up with a bite on his hand.
After severing it in two pieces and then returning to pick it up after about 45 minutes, Mr. Thomson was pretty sure the reptile was as dead as it can be. Having the certitude he killed the animal, Jake put his hand in the vase, "I pulled it up and it grabbed on to me even though it was dead,” the man says, according to the Daily Telegraph.
He was immediately taken to a nearby hospital to have an antivenin injection and to be placed under observation and intensive care, in order to make sure no complications would appear. The man's hand was swollen for almost a week after the incident and the scare was enough to make him stay away for reptiles, dead or alive.
According to Australian Reptile Park curator, Liz Vella, even when dead, snakes retain their bite reflex and can still be dangerous for up to one hour after death.
Mr. Thomas is not the only victim of a lifeless snake, as others who believed a dead reptile can't hurt them ended up with bites. Word of advice from specialists: if you come across a dead snake don't treat it like it is really dead, it can actually surprise you.