It was meant to be a calming getaway to discover the gorgeous World Heritage-listed K’gari (Fraser Island).
However whereas it grew to become an unforgettable expertise for the mistaken causes UK tourists Ben and his partner Georgia*, he can now provide some invaluable recommendation.
WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: UK vacationer’s harrowing snake chew ordeal on Okay’gari (Fraser Island).
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“Three issues to make vacationers like myself conscious of sooner or later: Put on thick, excessive boots in Australia for those who’re strolling within the bush, all the time carry a chew package and assume snakes are all over the place,” Ben, 29, informed 7NEWS.com.au.
Whereas tenting on the QueenslandBen wakened early on Saturday and despatched his drone up – solely to crash it into sand dunes above the camp.
So he placed on his trainers and trudged up the dunes.
Lengthy grass
“As I walked off the sand into the grass, my thoughts was occupied with retrieving the drone,” he mentioned.
“I managed to seek out the drone on the prime of the dune and made my method again down. I’ve watched nature reveals my entire life and I am fairly switched on with preserving my wits about me, particularly in Australia.
“I am unsure if it was the adrenaline of getting the drone again or assuming that snakes would not be on the seaside, however I simply did not even query it till I stepped on this darkish factor fairly deep within the grass, felt like a stabbing ache, appeared down at my ankle and noticed blood.”
His worst fears had been confirmed when he acquired again to his 4WD and inspected his ankle.
When he noticed the fang marks, he had the “sudden realization” that “lengthy grass plus summer season equals snakes”.
Each he and George “sat there frozen”.
That they had no cellphone reception and the tide was in, which means they had been caught on the campsite.
He put stress on his ankle whereas his associate ran over to a close-by household of campers.
“She defined what had occurred and instantly this pretty girl rushed over to me with a chew package, she informed me to not transfer, wrapped the chew in a bandage, circled the chew space and wrote the time of chew on the bandage,” Ben mentioned.
“That they had been informed the day earlier than that an japanese brown snake had been noticed simply alongside the campsite, so we would have liked to maneuver.
“Her husband Dan and his pal Lloyd carried me into the again of his new Landcruiser and rushed us throughout the rocks, alongside the seaside to the closest emergency cellphone.
“They referred to as the emergency providers, we had been informed that an ambulance was on the best way and to not transfer as to danger the prospect of additional envenomation.”
Ben says a RACQ LifeFlight helicopter arrived about 40 minutes later and needed to land a long way away as a result of tide.
He was flown, with out Georgia, to Hervey Bay Hospital the place his blood was monitored — and it was decided he had a “fortunate escape”.
“Each fangs had hit the ankle bone completely so it did not inject venom,” Ben mentioned.
Nonetheless their ordeal didn’t finish there. As Georgia drove their campervan to the hospital, the automobile’s clutch blew.
A “couple of fellows” helped her push the van to the aspect of the highway.
“We had booked a three-day tour of Fraser Island and solely made it by way of the primary one. Our journey was reduce brief however it’s been one hell of a narrative to inform.
“In all seriousness, this hasn’t modified my outlook on something. I really like Australia and I’ll proceed to discover it.”
* Ben and Georgia selected to not reveal their surnames
