Woman survives black mamba bite; still loves the slithering creatures

Amanda Bloem is a snake person – so much so that even after a venomous black mamba bite had her feeling stoned‚ with pins and needles in her face‚ she continues to live in a house with 23 snakes.

The Nelspruit stock controller and volunteer snake catcher was recently bitten in her hand by a juvenile black mamba.

She and her husband had rescued the snake from someone's home.

“To be honest‚ I don't remember much. I only remember the first 30 to 35 minutes‚” Bloem said on Monday‚ speaking to TMG Digital.

The incident took place on Saturday‚ May 21 at 14:55‚ at Bloem's home‚ when she accidentally grabbed the laundry bag the snake was being kept in.

“It actually felt like a needle prick - like when you have your blood tested‚” she said.

It was only after half an hour‚ when Bloem felt pain and pins and needles in her face and lips‚ that grew concerned that there might be a serious problem.

“When I stood up I felt totally drunk – like I had had three or four bottles of whisky. I was stoned‚” she said.

Bloem's husband Barend‚ a well-known Nelspruit snake handler‚ rushed her to hospital where she was placed on a drip and her heart and lungs were monitored.

Said Barend: “The doctors and sisters at the hospital were quick to help us … If you are a snake handler things like this are bound to happen‚ even though you take precautions.”

The incident has not dampened the couple's love of venomous and exotic snakes‚ however.

Barend has 23 pet snakes living in the house.

“[I've] got my own black mambas‚ boom slang‚ cobras … I've been playing with snakes for thirty-odd years‚” he said.

The couple were both trained to handle snakes by snake guru Chris Hobkirk‚ who owns a venom extraction facility in White River‚ Mpumalanga.

Thirty-nine year old Bloem was discharged from hospital hours after the nasty bite‚ early on the Sunday morning.

“I'm a strong woman. On Monday I was back at work‚” she said.

Bloem said remaining calm is essential in a snakebite episode. “I was totally calm. I made a lot of jokes‚” she said.

The feisty black mamba has been released into the mountains just outside of Nelspruit.