Man Bitten by Copperhead Snake in Basement---Man bitten by copperhead snake in basement of home: An Olathe man is recovering after he was bitten by a copperhead snake while walking in the basement of his home. "I thought, ' I've just stepped on a wasp,'" Tom Richards told KMBC's Martin Augustine.
But what Richards stepped on turned out to be a 30-inch-long copperhead snake in his finished basement.
Richards said the lights were off when the run-in happened, but he could tell something was slithering in the dark. "I saw something big, other than I should have seen.
So I went for the light and there was a copperhead just laying right where I had walked," Richards said. His wife called for an ambulance.
Richards spent three days in intensive care at a hospital, receiving 20 vials of antivenom. Eventually the swelling in his foot went down. Doctors told him that he can expect his foot to ache for at least a month.
A wildlife expert said she's not surprised that the snake found its way into Richards' nicely finished basement, especially in the heat and drought of summer.
Kimberly Hess, of Lakeside Nature Center, said that copperheads are looking for a place to cool down and find water; basements are perfect.
Read more: http://www.kmbc.com/news/kansas-city/Man-walking-in-basement-bitten-by-copperhead-snake/-/11664182/16602420/-/a0ayitz/-/index.html#ixzz26oGE8pNS
But what Richards stepped on turned out to be a 30-inch-long copperhead snake in his finished basement.
Richards said the lights were off when the run-in happened, but he could tell something was slithering in the dark. "I saw something big, other than I should have seen.
So I went for the light and there was a copperhead just laying right where I had walked," Richards said. His wife called for an ambulance.
Richards spent three days in intensive care at a hospital, receiving 20 vials of antivenom. Eventually the swelling in his foot went down. Doctors told him that he can expect his foot to ache for at least a month.
A wildlife expert said she's not surprised that the snake found its way into Richards' nicely finished basement, especially in the heat and drought of summer.
Kimberly Hess, of Lakeside Nature Center, said that copperheads are looking for a place to cool down and find water; basements are perfect.
Read more: http://www.kmbc.com/news/kansas-city/Man-walking-in-basement-bitten-by-copperhead-snake/-/11664182/16602420/-/a0ayitz/-/index.html#ixzz26oGE8pNS
