Eek! Snakes

[One Leg]

Link to original article: http://us.lrd.yahoo.com/_ylt=AsqduGs...hool_snakebite


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Girl May Lose Arm After School Snake Bite



POTTSTOWN, Pa. - A 14-year-old girl may lose her arm after being bitten by a poisonous copperhead snake at school, authorities said.

The snake was caught in Valley Forge by a 17-year-old male student, who took it in a shoebox to a drama club gathering at St. Pius X High School on Friday, Lower Pottsgrove Police Chief Ray Bechtel said. No regular classes were held that day, which was designated for staff development.

The boy was showing the reptile to other students when it bit the girl's finger, Bechtel said.

The girl, whose name was not released by police, apparently threw the snake across the room and the boy threw it outside. The snake was not found, but authorities were able to identify it because the boy photographed it with his camera cellphone, said Bechtel.

The victim was treated at Pottstown Memorial Medical Center about 45 minutes after being bitten, he said.

"The doctors said if it had been a half-hour longer she would likely have been dead," said Bechtel.

However, police said she could still lose her arm.

Police did not have an update on the girl's condition Sunday. She had been in very serious condition at Hershey Medical Center.

No charges were filed but police said they were investigating.

Copperhead snake bites are typically not fatal but are extremely painful and may cause extensive scarring and loss of limb use, according to the North Carolina Cooperative Extension of North Carolina State University.

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On the Net:

North Carolina Cooperative Extension: http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/gaston/Pests...copperhead.htm

[FFTorched]

Don't they teach common sense anymore? Hell I knew from a very young age that if it had a triangle shaped head to get the hell away from it. Also why didn't this snake make striking motions when first captured, and if it did why did the boy not notice this.

In my opinion the kid should have to pay for medical expenses if not more for his negligence. I really think kids are getting dumber and dumber, or being kept away from basic experiences. I remember going to Rattlesnake Roundups as a kid and learning a lot. They always had several state biologists on hand to explain, and it's a good experience.

If you have kids force them outdoors, and force them to know what is around them. That's all I have to say.

--Frank

[Freighttrain]

if that had been my little girl, i dont know if i could control my anger.

[Almost There]

The problem is no more survival of the fittest. In our society we allow stupid people to breed and flourish, hence they have stupid children, who in turn have stupid children, it's a vicious cycle! In a primitive society stupid people die before they reach adulthood so per capita they tend to be more intelligent.

If you live in an area with copperheads, you KNOW what they look like!

[c.coyle]

Don't they teach common sense anymore? ...

You think that 17 year old is the first kid who ever caught a poisonous snake and showed it to other kids? You think that 14 year old girl is the first kid who just couldn't resist taking a peek? Incredibly stupid? Of course. But kids that age do incredibly dangerous, stupid things.

Hell, you're 20. You're just coming out of those years. You ever do something really, really idiotic that could have hurt you or someone else? Ever drive a car at 100 mph? See how long you could hold a lit firecracker before tossing it? Dive 80 feet into a quarry?

It's not because kids are getting dumber and dumber. It's not because parents aren't raising their kids right nowadays. It's not because stupid people are breeding stupid kids. Kids just do stupid, inexplicable stuff now and then and, usually, nothing bad happens. Twenty years ago, you never would have heard about this. Nowadays, this stuff just gets instant publicity.

Wait 'till you have kids.

[CynJ]

Not blaming tv for this - but with the number of shows on Animal Planet and Discovery that show guys just grabbing the tail end of the snake and controlling it may be giving kids the idea that they can do it too

And I totally agree with c.coyle's "Kids just do stupid, inexplicable stuff now and then". Teenagers are not all known for being the brightest lights in the woods sometimes - they do first think later.

And if they were at the school for drama club - there should have been some adult supervision I would think.