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Driver Pulled Over For Speeding Was Trying To Get To Hospital After Encounter With Deadly Snake

Driver Pulled Over For Speeding Was Trying To Get To Hospital After Encounter With Deadly Snake

The driver, known as Jimmy, managed to kill the snake and throw it in the back of his van as he raced to hospital

Rebecca Shepherd

Rebecca Shepherd

A driver was pulled over by the police for speeding but was trying to race to the hospital after an encounter with a deadly snake left him believing he'd been bitten:

The 27-year-old man, called Jimmy, was driving along a regional Queensland highway when he spotted a brown snake slithering up his leg.

He was travelling at 123km/h (76 mph) on the Dawson Highway west of Calliope at around 5pm on 15 June and explained: "I'm driving along at 100, and I just started to brake.

"The more I moved my legs... it just started to wrap around me. Its head just started striking at the (driver's seat) chair, between my legs."

The snake.
Twitter/@QldPolice

Jimmy used a seat belt and a work knife he had in the ute to fight off the snake off while trying to stop the car.

Fearing he had already been bitten and his life was in danger, Jimmy believed he had no other option but to kill the snake and take it with him to hospital.

A local road policing officer spotted the utility speeding at 123km/h and quickly intercepted it.

Twitter/@QldPolice

Although the traffic officer had heard his fair share of excuses for speeding, he soon realised this was not just another colourful tale and promptly sought medical assistance.

Paramedics attended the scene and it was determined that Jimmy had not actually been bitten by the snake but was certainly suffering shock from the ordeal.

"It was pretty terrifying, I've never been so happy to see red and blue lights," Jimmy said.

Jimmy had to sit down at the side of the road.
Twitter/@QldPolice

Queensland Police posted the video on to Twitter and one person wrote: "If my memory is correct the brown snake is the second most deadliest snake in Australia. This is an example of a good reason why the driver should be excused from receiving a fine, he was going to stop."

Another added: "Can I just say, well done to the policeman for remaining calm & not making the assumption the driver was blatantly ignoring the law. He was quite obviously concerned for his life, potentially being bitten by a venomous snake. It's great to see that level headed police officers exist."

A third commented: "Damn I'd loose my s***! A huntsman crawled across the inside of my windscreen when I was young. I freaked out, emptied 2 cans of flyspray into the car and didn't touch it for a week."

While this was a particularly unique situation, snakes are protected under the Nature Conservation Act 1992 and people should not attempt to capture or injure wildlife in Queensland. More information about what you should do if you encounter a snake on your property can be found here.

Featured Image Credit: Twitter/@QldPolice

Topics: News, Snake, Animals