By Bill Scanlon
Rocky Mountain News
DOUGLAS COUNTY, Colo. — When a Douglas County deputy sheriff tried to move a rattlesnake from an area where kids were present on Friday, the venomous rattler bit the deputy, causing severe pain and swelling.
On Monday, Deputy Edward Roberson was listed in good condition at Parker Adventist Hospital.
The encounter is a painful reminder that Douglas County is in rattlesnake country - and that avoidance is the best policy, the sheriff’s office said.
On Friday afternoon, Roberson was called to the 5000 block of Sawdust Loop in the Pradera subdivision of Parker on a report of a rattlesnake in the roadway.
When Roberson got there he saw several kids in the area, so he decided to try to move the rattlesnake, said Douglas County sheriff spokeswoman Cocha Heyden. In attempting that, the rattler bit him on the hand.
Roberson radioed his supervisors that he’d been bitten and was starting to have a severe reaction. Meanwhile, his car moved forward into a field and crashed, Heyden said.
A nearby resident turned off the car, then helped Roberson until medical help arrived.
Douglas County is home to just one native venomous snake, the prairie rattlesnake, Sheriff Dave Weaver said.
Any bite from a rattler should be considered a medical emergency, say Weaver and Douglas County park rangers. If you encounter a snake, give it a wide berth, at least six feet, they say.
Copyright 2008 Rocky Mountain News