08-18-2010, 07:15 PM
i have done this thread elsewhere in the past. there have been pygmy rattler bites in several walmart garden centers. they hide in the potted plants. so be careful when you are poking around!
A man was hospitalized Tuesday after he was bitten twice by a pit viper at a Lowe's Home Improvement store, an Ocala Fire Rescue official said.
Brigade Chief Brian Stoothoff said a man in his 40s was bitten twice on his left hand in the store's garden section. The man was taken to Ocala (florida) Regional Medical Center and was expected to recover, Stoothoff said.
According to Stoothoff, the man was conscious when emergency crews responded to the store on Silver Springs Boulevard about 3:40 p.m. Tuesday.
Stoothoff said the venomous snake was caught and transported to the hospital with the patient so it could be identified, in case antivenin was necessary.
Stoothoff was unaware of whether the man received antivenin for the bites.
He said snakebite incidents aren't typical in areas as populated as the store, but they are not unheard of.
"Certainly it doesn't happen every day, but it's not that unusual," Stoothoff said.
A man was hospitalized Tuesday after he was bitten twice by a pit viper at a Lowe's Home Improvement store, an Ocala Fire Rescue official said.
Brigade Chief Brian Stoothoff said a man in his 40s was bitten twice on his left hand in the store's garden section. The man was taken to Ocala (florida) Regional Medical Center and was expected to recover, Stoothoff said.
According to Stoothoff, the man was conscious when emergency crews responded to the store on Silver Springs Boulevard about 3:40 p.m. Tuesday.
Stoothoff said the venomous snake was caught and transported to the hospital with the patient so it could be identified, in case antivenin was necessary.
Stoothoff was unaware of whether the man received antivenin for the bites.
He said snakebite incidents aren't typical in areas as populated as the store, but they are not unheard of.
"Certainly it doesn't happen every day, but it's not that unusual," Stoothoff said.
Since being so duly informed, I now am even careful & watch out when picking through stacked grapes, bananas, oranges, & or other fruits that come from foreign countries where critters could tag along for the ride! 
