A man was rushed to the government hospital in Cebu City after he was bitten by an eight-foot long “sawa” or snake in Sitio Lub-an, Barangay Casuntingan in Mandaue City on Wednesday night.
Casuntingan Barangay Captain Oscar Del Castillo said the snake was seen by four children who were playing near the lake in the area at around 8 p,m.
Raymundo Manzo, 40, who was nearby tried to catch the snake to stop it from harming the children but was instead bitten on the right leg when he tried to grab its tail with his bare hands.
“Naukab ang iyang samad kay gibira man niya dretso ang bitin. Pagbira niya, gipaak nasad siya sa kumagko,” Del Castillo told Cebu Daily News.
(The bite wound went deeper because the snake pulled at the leg as he was biting on it. When the man managed to free his leg, the snake then went on to bite his thumb.)
Manzo was rushed to the Department of Health-run Vicente Sotto Medical Center where he received anti-tetanus shots.
Del Castillo said the snake is now caged at his house’s compound.
The barangay captain said this was not the first time that the snake has attacked humans in Casuntingan but it was only caught now.