By Roy Ward
A driver made a quick escape from her car while travelling on the Monash Freeway after finding a deadly tiger snake slithering up her leg.
Police were alerted to the women’s plight after receiving calls for a welfare check on a barefoot woman trying to flag down vehicles near the Toorak Road exit on Saturday about 10.40am.
In a media release on Sunday, police recounted the experience of the woman, who was not identified.
“The woman explained that she had been travelling at 80km/h on the freeway when she felt something on her foot and looked down to find a deadly tiger snake slithering up her leg,” police said in the statement.
“Remarkably, she was able to fend the snake off her and weave through traffic before pulling over and leaping out of her car to safety.
Nanninga bags the snake.Credit: Victoria Police
“Still in a state of shock and needing to ensure she wasn’t bitten, the driver was assessed by paramedics while police pondered on how to deal with the snake.”
Police contacted Melbourne Snake Control owner Tim Nanninga, who identified the snake as a tiger snake and found and removed the reptile from the car.
“I arrived at the scene where the traffic was at a standstill and after a bit of searching I located a tiger snake and safely removed it from the car,” Nanninga said in a Facebook post.
Nanninga praised the woman’s ability to get off the road safely.
“It’s a miracle how she got off the road safely and called VicPol [Victoria Police],” Nanninga told Nine News.
Tim Nanninga removes the snake from the woman’s car on the Monash Freeway.
“Normally when snakes are in cars, they find a really nice little hidey hole and can stay there for days, but we were lucky the snake had moved along to the back of the car [which allowed it to be removed].”
Nine also reported that the snake was safely released into bushland at an unidentified location.
Wildlife Victoria’s fact sheet on tiger snakes lists them as “one the world’s most venomous snakes” and, due to their prevalence in Victoria, provides some advice for avoiding encounters with them.
It also noted tiger snakes can be active during the day and night in warmer weather and usually spend the cooler months sheltering in places like hollow logs, rodent burrows or other suitable hideouts.
“All tiger snakes should be regarded as highly venomous and dangerous to humans. To reduce the chance of encountering a snake around your home, keep grass very short and remove piles of rubbish and wood,” the fact sheet said.
There was no advice given about keeping them out of cars.
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