‘Oh hell no’: Coastal carpet python surprises Byron Bay family by sliding through shower extraction fan

A North Coast family got quite a surprise when a snake slid through the extraction fan in their shower this morning, making for quite an iconic Australia Day interaction.

A Coastal Carpet Python decided to wish Byron Bay resident Brett David a happy Australia Day when it made its way through the ceiling exhaust fan into his shower. Picture: Brett David

A North Coast family got quite a shock when a snake slid down through the extraction fan in their shower on Friday morning.

One snake catcher said similar appearances by the reptiles are quite common in the region.

Byron Bay resident Sarah Brooker snapped a photo of the serpent – a largely harmless, non-venomous coastal carpet python – and shared it with her brother Brett.

“My husband Jason had just got in the shower and turned around to see the python coming through the extraction fan,” she said.

“We had taken the cover off to clean it and the snake took the opportunity to come in.

“Jason finished in the shower and I got a stick from outside to coax the snake back into the roof.

“The snake was very calm and not bothered by any of it.”

Brett took to social media, posting the snake’s antics on the popular Snake Identification Australia Facebook page.

The python on the move. Picture: Sarah Brooker

A resounding “oh hell no” was one remark among expletives.

“OMG, I would have walked straight through the glass to get away. Then had a heart attack”, one woman joked.

Another said she joined the page to lessen her fear of snakes. “This post has not helped”.

“I’ll never go in my bathroom again!” a third woman wrote.

A fourth woman quipped: “Well, that is one way for nature to wish you a Happy Australia Day.”

One woman said she discovered a snake in her toilet. “It was my worst nightmare, now I can face anything.”

The snake was quickly identified as a carpet python – a common snake in the region.

The majestic and fairly slow moving creatures, commonly seen around homes, can grow up to four metres and live up to 20 years.

Snakes are protected by law in NSW and a permit is needed to relocate them.

The pythons are listed as “least concern” on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species.

A coastal carpet python. Picture: Liam Kidston.

I'll Catch it Snake Relocations Tweed Heads and Byron snake catcher Sarah Mailey said the most common reason snakes show up in a house is because they are looking for water.

“It’s really warm at the moment. If it’s come through the exhaust fan obviously it’s got a lot quicker way to get to the toilet, or a sink, or some body of water,” she said.

“Potentially, as it’s trying to get out of the roof the roof tiles could be really hot and too hot to actually get out, so it could be desperate measures to get out of the roof.”

Sarah Mailey.

Ms Mailey said snakes coming through exhaust fans and crevices in homes was a common occurrence on the North Coast.

“It can give people a big fright,” she said.

Ms Mailey said snakes can come in chasing geckos and small rodents.

“The big thing is you have to try and stay calm,” Ms Mailey advised.

She said to back yourself away from a snake found in a home and take a minute to breathe.

She suggested “if you’re confident enough you can shut the room off and get a window open for it to get out”.

“Or call a snake catcher,” she said.