Dad recalls terrifying moment he stopped one of the world's deadliest snakes attacking his two-year-old toddler

A dad from Adelaide has been labelled a hero, after he saved his two-year-old daughter from one of the deadliest snakes in the world.

The family had been at their home in Tailem Bend for mere moments, when a snake approached the toddler.

Peter Woodard/ Wikipedia Public Domain

To save his infant daughter, Jake Coombe threw himself in front of his daughter and was bitten by the venomous snake – which was thought to be an eastern brown, one of the world’s most deadly snakes.

In fact, the snake is so venomous that it can kill small children and pets in a matter of minutes if they do not receive medical attention.

According to one study, eastern browns are responsible for 60 percent of all snake bite fatalities in Australia, with the last being a 55-year-old woman in November 2022.

However, this didn’t stop Mr Coombe from throwing himself in front of the deadly animal to save his daughter Alba.

The family had been out for the day, when Mr Coombe felt something was very wrong and went to search the hallway where his young daughter had been playing.

Noticing the garage door was still open, he rushed to Alba and found the little girl face to face with the deadly snake.

As it went to strike her, the heroic dad pulled his daughter into his arms and was bitten on the foot by the angry eastern brown.

Facebook/Jake Coombe

Incredibly, the snake gave Mr Coombe a ‘dry bit’, which means no venom was released.

After spending the night in hospital to recover, the brave dad was given a clean bill of health and even spoke to The Messenger about his heroic deed.

Understandably, he’s still thinks about what would have happened if he’d arrived a second later.

He said: “Maybe it would have been a different story if Alba got to it – she could have picked it up and wouldn't have got away so quickly”.

He added: “Better me than her, that's for sure.”

It’s thought that the snake was trying to escape severe flooding along the Murray River and authorities have told residents to remain on high alert for the snakes.

Terrifyingly, the snakes have been known to flatten themselves so they can slither under doors and can shrink to half their height when needed.

Those living in the surrounding area have been told to buy draught excluders for external doors and ensure doors are well maintained to keep the venomous vipers out.

Topics: Animals, Australia, World News

Katherine Sidnell

Katherine is an entertainment journalist with a love of all things nerdy. Starting out writing Doctor Who fan fiction as a kid, she has gone on to interview the likes of Matt Damon, James May and Dua Lipa to name a few. Published in The Sun, The Daily Mail and Evening Standard - she now joins Ladbible as resident nerd in chief.

@ksidnell