I was bitten by snake and barely felt it, but hours later I was in hospital after my blood CURDLED
A DAD told how his blood literally curdled after he was bitten by a venomous snake while working on a busy motorway.
Warren Soulsby, 25, said he felt a ‘wee nip’ on his left pinky while clearing overgrown bushes from the roadside – and assumed he’d been pricked by a thorn.
But he was stunned to discover from medics that the two puncture marks were caused by a poisonous adder, which shot out of a glass beer bottle.
Colleagues rushed the highway maintenance worker, of Tranent, East Lothian, to hospital after he started to feel dizzy and was sick.
Docs at Edinburgh Royal Infirmary ran tests that revealed his blood was twice the viscosity it should be and hooked him up to an IV while ordering antivenom to be motor-biked in from Manchester.
Dad-of-two Warren said: “The doctors did a blood test and within 10-15 minutes they said ‘your blood is a bit out of sorts’.
“They said my blood was twice as thick as it should be as there’s some kind of venom in there – I was stunned, this was the first time a snake had been mentioned.
“I just felt horrible.
“They hooked me up to an IV and painkillers instantly, and also gave me diazepam to keep me relaxed because I was panicking even though they told me it wasn’t deadly because I was healthy.
“They had four motorbikes brought up from Manchester with the anti-venom for the European adder.”
After three days, Warren was discharged with no long-term effects.
Shocking pictures show a gaping hole in his hand, following the incident which happened in February on the A1 in Coldingham, Berwickshire.
Warren said: “When I saw two puncture marks dripping with blood, I didn’t automatically think ‘snake’ because why would I? We’re in Scotland.
“So I got the shock of my life when I realised I’d been bitten – and that it was poisonous too.
“It’s a crazy story to tell and sometimes I have to whip out the pictures of my hand to get people to believe me.
“I suppose I deserved it. I woke one up during hibernation and it was really cranky – we’ve all been there.”
Now Warren is encouraging others to be mindful of any slithery critters which may be hidden in deep grass during hibernation to ensure nobody suffers the same fate.
He added: “My advice to people going into grassy areas is to stay on a trail already made because adders don’t like being disturbed.
“If they’re disturbed and they can get away freely they will go away. They won’t go for you.
“The only reason this one went for me is that it only had one exit from that bottle and it just happened that my hand was in the way of that exit.”
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