By Sarah Smith
A Perth woman has been rushed to hospital after being bitten by a tiger snake in her backyard, with paramedics praising her teenage niece for her life-saving action.
Tracey Alexander was weeding her garden about 6pm on Monday when she looked down and spotted the snake.
She turned to run, but the snake struck out and bit her on the ankle three times before she got away.
“My family laid me down very quickly, on my outside table, and my niece she wrapped up the wounds very quickly which saved my life,” Alexander said.
An ambulance was called and the 48-year-old was rushed to Joondalup Hospital. Luckily, the snake’s venom didn’t enter Alexander’s bloodstream.
“When my wounds started going dark purple I noticed it wasn’t a branch or scratch, it was actually a snake bite,” she said.
Alexander’s niece, Shayne McKenzie-Turner, 17, said she wrapped her hands around her aunt’s ankle “as hard as I could” and pushed down in an attempt to cut off circulation.
“We used a belt, my cousin took his belt off and wrapped it around her leg as tight as we could,” she said.
“I think I was like, if she got bitten by a snake, and there’s venom, wouldn’t it just travel? I did what I thought was right.
“It was a bit messy, a bit everywhere, but I’m glad I got there in time for her.”
Paramedics praised Shayne’s quick actions in lying her aunt down and applying pressure to her ankle.
However, they pointed out a common misconception – while tourniquets such as a belt would stop blood flow, they didn’t stop lymphatic system movement.
And the lymphatic system is how snake venom travels through the body.
St John first aid trainer Rondel Dancer said the first thing to do if bitten by a snake was to lay down still, apply a pressure immobilisation bandage and make sure you have emergency services on the way.
“The pressure immobilisation bandage stops the movement of muscle … snakes inject into the lymph system, so muscle and tissue, and that system causes the venom to travel, so it will travel towards the heart, not through the circulatory system,” she said.
A lot of people think [the venom] goes into the bloodstream, not the lymphatic system.”
Dancer said it was important to get to hospital as soon as possible if bitten by a snake.
“If a pressure immobilisation bandage is applied correctly with first aid training, it buys you more time,” she said.
9News Perth