Thirteen Foot Burmese Python Kills Owner
It's an old story from 1996 but it happens regularly enough to be an issue:
"Based on a New York Times Report by David Herszenhorn. Thursday - October 10, 1996.
According to the New York Times, 19-year old Grant Williams of 365 East 183rd Street Bronx died as the result of an attack by his 13 foot long Burmese Python which may have mistaken him as food.
The victim was found at about 1:30 PM on October 9th by a neighbor lying in a pool of blood with the snake coiled around his torso in the hallway of his apartment building. He was pronounced dead at Jacobi Medical Center. An ambulance crew removed the snake from the victim and it was taken to the Bronx Zoo.
According to the report, Williams and his 17 year old brother, Lamar, purchased the snake at a local pet store known as Pet City about five months ago for $300.00.
This attack may be a feeding related incident as a live chicken was found nearby, still in the box. Williams was apparently getting ready to feed the snake, out of its cage. Pythons, like other snakes, have an acute sense of smell. The detection of a food odor such as a chicken and the proximity of Williams to the snake evidently led the snake to mistake Williams as its prey or food.
This case, like others including cases seen by the undersigned in the E.R. indicate that prey items such as rodents, chickens or rabbits do not have to actually scent a human in order for a snake to attack them. The mere presence of the food in the vicinity can set off a sort of feeding frenzy. Therefore feeding snakes, especially large ones capable of inflicting significant injury or death, should be done with extreme caution."
Thirteen Foot Burmese Python Kills Owner