Durban — A large black mamba recently visited the eThekwini Municipality water and sanitation depot in Ottawa, Verulam.
Snake handler Jason Arnold was called to remove the snake, which was believed to have been spotted by workers filling water at the depot. The snake was seen on a concrete wall. It was sitting in a shrub on the wall.
Arnold said it was a “fairly large black mamba”.
“Obviously, it feels nice and safe because it is not moving. But as soon as I get my tongs and try to catch it, it’s obviously going to start moving,” Arnold said.
“I just hope I can get it because I can’t get on the other side of this fence if it bails there.”
The other side of the fence was a natural green environment.
Arnold tried to look for the best spot to put his tongs through but said no matter what he did, he would spook the snake.
He stuck his tongs in the bush while trying to shield his eyes from the sun, another challenge he was facing.
While Arnold was looking for the snake at the top, one of the municipal employees saw it come down the fence and Arnold sprang into action.
In no time Arnold had it by the tail and tried not to injure the snake because there was barbed wire around. The snake then slithered up the fence and Arnold had it by his tongs.
“That’s exactly what I wanted it to do,” Arnold said.
“It did exactly what I wanted it to do. When you hold it by the tail, the head will always come out somewhere to come and see and to try and bite whatever’s holding it. So that worked out perfectly.”
Arnold said the snake looked bigger than it did while in the bush.
“It looked to me like it was about 2m. This is about 2.4, 2.5, maybe 2.6m,” Arnold said.
After checking, Arnold said the snake was a male.
“Very well fed. He’s had a good source of food here,” Arnold said.
While holding the snake, he explained that he was trying to stop the snake from making coils around him because they get leverage and try to pull their head free.
Later, Arnold drove to the “middle of nowhere” to release the black mamba, which disappeared into the vegetation.
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