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Security guard in Tangerang dies of snake bite
The Sioux Snake Foundation, an NGO dedicated to the study of snakes, believed that the security guard’s poor handling of the snake caused it to bite him.
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A security guard has died after being bitten by a poisonous snake in Tangerang, Banten. (Shutterstock/vinap)
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security guard, Iskandar, 46, has died after being bitten on the finger by a poisonous snake in Cluster Michelia in Gading Serpong, Tangerang, Banten.
The poisonous snake, a weling (Malayan krait), was identified as the cause of the fatality.
Iskandar was reported on Tuesday to be playing with the snake, which he caught.
“After being bitten on the left index figure, he still appeared normal. The bite mark did not look bruised or cause a serious injury,” housing security head Musliman said on Friday as quoted by kompas.com.
However, at 7:30 p.m., Iskandar was reportedly in a fragile state and was taken to Bethsaida Hospital before being moved to Tangerang General Hospital.
He was pronounced dead at 4:30 a.m. after the venom spread throughout his entire body.
It is not the first snake sighting in the area, with reports of snakes in February, March and April.
The Sioux Snake Foundation, an NGO dedicated to the study of snakes, believed that the security guard’s poor handling of the snake caused it to bite him.
“The victim was trying to handle the snake without proper equipment and training, and after being bitten proceeded to suck the wound, which hastened a fatal reaction,” the Sioux Snake Foundation said in a written statement on Sunday.
Malayan krait venom is neurotoxic and quickly attacks the nervous system, shutting down heart functions.
As local hospitals did not have a ready supply of the necessary anti-venom, local hospitals and housing complexes were instructed by the Sioux Snake Foundation to obtain some for future incidents.
“The weling snake is the natural predator of other snakes. Without this natural predator, other species of snakes would explode [in population],” the foundation said. (tru)
