Farmer waits 4 days for help after being bitten by a venomous snake in the AM – 11/03/2023 – Daily life

Farmer Cícero José de Oliveira, 43, was measuring a plot of land in Careiro, in the interior of Amazonas, when he was bitten by a jaca surucucu, cataloged by the Butantan Institute as the largest venomous snake in the Americas and the second biggest in the world.

He owns a small rural property and was on the banks of the Juma River on the day of the incident, October 26th. The location is difficult to access

“A lot of blood came out. I thought the situation could get worse, so I and the two who were with me ran towards the road for about a thousand meters”, he told the Ibama team (Brazilian Institute of the Environment and Natural Resources) , who helped him.

The farmer’s leg got stuck and one of the people accompanying him moved to ask for help. He and another man stayed in the woods waiting for rescue. On the fourth day of waiting, they were without food and water. Before that, they ate palm hearts.

To help him, the Department of Health called two Ibama firefighters who were at the base in the municipality of Manaquiri, in the metropolitan region of Manaus, working to combat forest fires.

Accompanied by two residents, they had to travel 34 km on foot, round trip, to rescue the farmer.

Brigadiers Jeffite Cordeiro Ambrósio and José Augusto Antunes are nursing technicians and provided first aid to Cícero. They entered the native forest at 11:40 am on the 30th and found the farmer six hours later.

The farmer reported feeling extreme pain. The brigade members applied anti-venom and left the dense forest the following morning. They and the other men carried the farmer in a hammock and walked five hours to a hospital.

According to the Incident Commander of Operation Amazonas 2023, Kurtis François Teixeira Bastos, a brigade member walks, on average, 10 km per day.

Butantan informs that the jackfruit surucucu is known for its beauty – its orange color contrasts with dark spots on its back – and for being the largest venomous snake in the Americas. In the world, it is second only to the king cobra.

The surucucu can measure up to three meters in length and has, at the end of its tail, raised scales similar to the skin of a jackfruit. It is found in the Amazon and in the northern part of the Atlantic forest, between Ceará and Rio de Janeiro.

The bite causes swelling, pain, necrosis, clotting problems, diarrhea and decreased heart rate. In serious cases, it can kill.

According to Ibama, farmer Cícero is doing well after being rescued.