Snake bites two-year-old girl; she bites back and kills it
In a shocking turn of events, a 20-inch snake bit a two-year-old girl in Turkey. But what's probably more shocking was the girl returned the favor by biting the reptile, killing it in the process.
According to Newsweek, neighbors from the village of Kantar in the city of Bingol reportedly heard the girl screaming as a snake of unknown species attacked her in the backyard last Aug. 10.
As the neighbors rushed to see what was happening, they reportedly saw a bite mark on the girl's lip. The snake, meanwhile, was clamped in her mouth. The girl was said to be initially playing with the reptile before things went south.
She was taken to the local hospital promptly. Fortunately, the snake bite wasn't fatal and she's doing well after a 24-hour observation.
The snake, however, wasn't slippery enough to avoid death.
The girl's father, Mehmet Ercan, told media sources that he was at work when the incident happened.
"Our neighbors have told me that the snake was in the hand of my child, she was playing with it and then it bit her," media quoted Ercan as saying. "Allah has protected her, really."
Turkey is home to 45 species of snake, 12 of which are venomous. The country saw 550 cases of snake bites from 1995 to 2004, based on data from the National Poison Information Center.
The World Health Organization has said about 5.4 million people worldwide are bitten by snakes annually. Some 2.7 million of the cases are from venomous species.
About 81,000 to 138,000 people die of snake bites each year. Thrice the number results in amputations, paralyses, and other permanent disabilities.