Snake attack victim tells: ‘It started coming at me, striking over and over’

A Queensland woman has described the terror of being repeatedly struck by a snake when an early morning bush walk went horribly wrong.

Lisa Bathe was bitten by a snake on the Mount Louisa Bush Walking Track. Pictures: Supplied

• Snake season explained

A Queensland woman has described the terror of being repeatedly struck by a snake when an early morning bush walk went horribly wrong.

Townsville resident Lisa Bathe says she is thankful for the three strangers who used a bum bag strap and a drink bottle strap to create a makeshift tourniquet after she was bitten by a snake on at the Mount Louisa Bush Walking Track.

“I hadn’t been up to the track in over six months and I woke up early, I couldn’t sleep well and through right let’s do something sensible, I’ll go for some exercise,” she said.

Ms Bathe said she was only around 500m up the track when she saw a “1.5 to 2m” snake slither onto the path.

“I saw it and s**t myself and stopped.”

“There were three ladies coming towards me and I hollered at them and told them to stop because there was a snake and not to come any further.

■ Australia’s most deadly snakes and how you identify them

Lisa Bathe was bitten by a snake on the Mount Louisa Bush Walking Track. Pictures: Supplied

“That must have sparked it (to try and bite) because it was slithering off into the grass from one of the step to the other and I obviously p--sed it off and it started coming at me and striking over and over.”

Beginning to stumble backwards to try and avoid the snake, Ms Bathe said she fell over and landed on some rocks and didn’t realise she had actually been bitten in the process.

“It all happened quite quickly,” she said.

“I was more concerned about where I’d fallen or hurt myself at the time and then it slithered off before we could ID it.

“I was going to carry on walking but the ladies that were there saw it all happen and they just wanted to check and make sure I hadn’t been bitten.”

Lisa Bathe was bitten by a snake on the Mount Louisa Bush Walking Track. Pictures: Supplied

Upon inspection Ms Bathe and the three women realised she had been bitten on her ankle.

“They swung into action and told me to sit down and not move and they were on the phone to triple-0 right away,” Ms Bathe said.

With emergency crews on the way and no first aid equipment, the women used a bum bag strap and a drink bottle strap to create a makeshift tourniquet on Ms Bathe’s ankle.

She was then carried down the path by paramedics and firefighters and taken to the emergency room.

Ms Bathe believes the snake may not have injected it’s venom when it bit her leaving her unscathed, but stayed in the hospital for 24 hours to do various checks before she was allowed to go home.

Lisa Bathe was bitten by a snake on the Mount Louisa Bush Walking Track. Pictures: Supplied

She said she is very thankful for women who helped her.

“We are still in touch,” she said.

“If they weren’t there I would have just carried on and not really thought too much of it because I wasn’t even aware or could tell that I had been bitten.”

With snake season getting underway with the hotter weather, residents are encouraged to keep an eye out for snakes.

The Queensland Government’s Poisons Information Centre advises residents to keep their lawns mowed and backyards clear of rubbish to prevent the presence of snakes and to seek professional help for their removal.

Lisa Bathe was bitten by a snake on the Mount Louisa Bush Walking Track. Pictures: Supplied

According to the centre if someone is bitten by a snake, immediately ring triple-0 and the person stops breathing begin CPR resuscitation.

A bandage should be applied in most cases, depending on the location of the bite, and the patient should keep their body still.

For more information on snake bite first aid visit the Queensland Government website.

Originally published as Snake attack victim tells: ‘It started coming at me, striking over and over’