Devin Waxman, a 14-year-old middle school student who was bite by a snake on school grounds. (Fox 35 Orlando)
A Florida middle school student is recovering days after being bitten by a snake while walking on school grounds.
Devin Waxman, who attends Markham Woods Middle School in Mary Lake, said he didn’t spot the slithering reptile when it bit him in the ankle on Monday.
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“I was talking from 3rd period and was throwing my water bottle away, and it made a sound and it bit me!” the 14-year-old told Fox 35 Orlando, adding that the snake looked like a cottonmouth viper. “It latched onto my leg, and I had to kick it off and run.”
He said Thursday it still stings on and off.
“It’s sore. I don’t know when the pain is going to stop,” Waxman added.
Cottonmouths are common in Central Florida and their venom is potent. The teenager, who got two fang marks on his ankle, said he considers himself very lucky because his bite was dry – meaning no venom was injected.
“I’m very grateful for that,” Waxman said. “That could have been very bad if it went the other way.”
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Seminole County School District has sent warning to parents and students to be on alert for other snakes.
Animal expert Bob Cross said drought plaguing Central Florida is pushing cottonmouths from their normal habitats.
“I mean, if the swamps are drying up, cotton mouths are just like alligators, they’re going to go to the next water hole,” he told Fox 35 Orlando.
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