THE VENOMOUS SNAKES OF TEXAS Presidio County, Texas Photo courtesy of Troy and Marla Hibbitts
Coral Snakes Bite 2
THE CORPUS CHRISTI CALLER TIMES (Texas) 22 Apr 08
Coral snakes are quickly becoming a problem for Coastal Bend area residents.
Two people from the area have been bitten by the venomous snakes in the past six days, which is rare a thing for these parts, according to Dr. Elda Sanchez, the assistant director of the Natural Toxins Research Center at Texas A&M University-Kingsville.
"We have coral snakes in this area, but for it to happen that frequently is rare," Sanchez said.
Sanchez said coral snakes -- which feature a bulb-like head, erect fangs and red, yellow and black color bands on its body -- tend to come out early in the morning and late at night during the spring and prefer to hide under wood, leaves and tires. She said coral snakes are shy and are more prone to bite people if they are stepped on or handled.
Flour Bluff resident Judy Hales found that out the hard way when she grabbed a 20-inch coral snake that her cat brought into her home last week. Hales did so while trying to protect her paraplegic daughter, Shea, and the snake bit her left thumb.
Hales said she spent 48 hours in the intensive care unit at Bay Area Hospital last week because of it.
"I've lived in this area all of my life and I've seen rattlers before but never a coral snake" the 63-year-old Hales said. "I wanted to get it away from my daughter because if she would've been bit -- it would've been disastrous. It bit me and hung on and I was pretty sure it injected me with venom, so I had a friend take me to the hospital."
That friend, Ada Sanchez, said Hales needed antivenin for the bite but was told by hospital staff that they did not have any more of it in Corpus Christi at that time because the last of it was transported to Hallettsville four hours earlier to treat another snake-bite case.
Thus, Sanchez said, Kleberg and Jim Wells County constables rushed a combined four vials of antivenin from Alice and Kingsville to Bay Area Hospital because those were the closest cities that had any. Sanchez said Hales also later received another four vials of it from San Antonio.
"Judy's tongue swelled and she wasn't able to speak before they gave her the antivenin -- it worked like magic," Sanchez said.
Corpus Christi keeps one vial of antivenin for coral snakes because the entire country receives only up to 100 vials per year, according to Bay Area Hospital emergency room staff.
A 24-year-old man was also bitten by a coral snake in Beeville Sunday and was transported by Halo Flight to Christus Spohn Hospital Memorial at about 11 p.m. No update on his condition was available Monday.
While one or two people in Texas die from venomous snake bites each year, there have been no reported deaths from coral snake bites in this country since the antivenin was released in 1967, according to National Geographic.
ANTIVENIN TO TREAT BITES WILL NOT BE AROUND VERY LONG
There is a problem with the antivenin, however -- it won't be around much longer. Dr. Sanchez said there's only enough of it to last through October.
That's because the only facility making the Federal Drug Administration-approved antivenin for North American coral snakes closed its doors six years ago after making several years worth of the medicine to treat humans and pets, according to Scripps Howard News Service.
Thus, Dr. Sanchez said the FDA will have to find a replacement for it. She said there currently exists an antivenin in Mexico, but in order for it be used in the U.S. it must receive FDA approval.
CORAL SNAKES
Coral snakes are venomous snakes that live in wooded, sandy and marshy areas. They prefer to hide under wood, leaf piles and tires. Coral snakes are 20 to 30 inches long and have bulb-like heads, short fangs and red, yellow and black color bands on their body.
HOW TO TELL IF IT'S A CORAL SNAKE
Coral snakes and king snakes look similar but each has a different pattern. To tell the difference, remember this rhyme:
Red and yellow kills a fellow,
Red and black, friend of Jack
WHAT TO DO IF BITTEN BY A CORAL SNAKE
- Call 911 and seek medical attention immediately and try to remain calm
- Lift the bitten limb so that it is level with the heart. Raising the limb above the heart could hasten the venom to other parts of the body, while lifting the limb below the heart could cause the limb to become swollen
- Remove all jewelry and any constricting clothing to avoid swelling
- Gently wash the wound with soap and water if available
WHAT NOT TO DO IF BITTEN BY A CORAL SNAKE
- Don’t apply ice or a cold pack
- Don’t take pain relievers or other medications unless instructed by a doctor
- Don’t make cuts over the snake bite because that often leads to more tissue damage
- Don’t apply a tourniquet or a similar constricting device
- Don’t drink alcoholic beverages
Sources: National Geographic, the Natural Toxins Research Center at Texas A&M University-Kingsville and the Texas Department of State Health Services
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