City officials warn: Last week's snake-bite may not be last of season

Port Aransas officials warn that a child's being struck by a rattlesnake on Saturday, May 3, may not be the last time a snake strikes this year.

The child, who has been released from the hospital and is now back in school, was bitten at 6:10 p.m. in the Village Walk neighborhood. Police reports show that he was taken to his home, where parents called the 911 emergency number. Emergency Medical Service (EMS) paramedics called for a Halo Flight medical evacuation helicopter, and the child was flown to a Corpus Christi hospital.

EMS Director Yancy Gillespie said this is the time of year when rattlesnakes are most frequently seen.

Animal Control Officer Jim Williams agreed.

"They come out looking for water," Williams said.

Williams advised anyone who sees a rattlesnake to leave it strictly alone and to call police at 749-6421 to report it.

"Get away from the snake," Gillespie emphasized. Even if you're struck by a snake, he said, "Don't try to pick it up for identification."

Gillespie said much of the earlier advice on what to do about a snakebite is outdated or has been disproven.

For instance, he said:

• Don't try to put a tourniquet on the limb if it's an arm or leg that's bitten

• Don't put ice on a snakebite; that causes more damage than it's worth

• Don't try to suck the poison out of a snakebite.

"Mostly, the venom will stay in one spot," he said. "A tourniquet puts the entire limb in jeopardy, and trying to suck the venom out will merely spread it through the system more." If those are things not to do, what are the things to do?

• Remain calm

• If a limb is bitten, keep that limb lower than the heart; this lessens the chance that the venom will make its way to the heart

• Call the 911 emergency number as soon as possible.

Gillespie and Williams agreed that last year, three people were struck by rattlesnakes in Port Aransas. Two of them were city workers, Gillespie said.

They hope this year won't be as bad.