CINCINNATI, Ohio — An employee at the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden was taken to the hospital on Thursday after being bitten by an eastern diamondback rattlesnake.
WCPO Channel 9 reported the zoo confirmed in a statement that the individual was in a stable state at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center. The incident took place in a restricted area of the zoo, ensuring no threat to visitors, as mentioned by WLWT Channel 5.
Furthermore, WXIX Channel 19 learned from the zoo that the employee did not need anti-venom treatment.
The zoo’s website informs that the eastern diamondback rattlesnake is the largest venomous snake in North America and is typically found in the southeastern regions of the U.S. This reptile can grow up to 8 feet and weigh as much as 20 pounds.
Although the bite of this snake is excruciating, fatalities in humans are uncommon, as stated by the Smithsonian’s National Zoo & Conservation Biology Institute. The venom contains a toxin known as hemotoxin that leads to the destruction of red blood cells and results in tissue damage.