Highly Venomous Snake Found Hanging Around Kids Playground Captured, Viral Video Shows

Imagine having a close encounter with a deadly snake while having a jolly time at a playground. This is exactly what happened at a playground in Canberra, Australia, when the play time of many children was interrupted by an eastern brown snake.

Gavin Smith from ACT Snake Removals arrived at Weston Park on Sunday afternoon after receiving information that a snake was "hanging around" in the playground. He captured the reptile after finding it meters away from the play equipment.

A video of the rescue showed Smith catching the reptile with his bare hands and placing it inside a black bag. The snake is then seen being released into a grassy area away from the park.

Speaking to The Canberra Times, Smith said, "You need to be so careful and attuned to their behavior to do it in a safe way. The bystanders were completely still and they're all just watching where that snake is. As soon as I turned up they said 'there it is' and that makes my job so much easier. In the video, you can see they're all spaced out, no one is harassing the snake, no one is trying to hurt the snake and the snake is really calm."

Smith went on to say that he wanted to raise awareness that snakes aren’t aggressive creatures.

"I never want to downplay the potential for them to deliver a fatal bite if they are interacted with. But it's all about how we act around them, that's the key thing. If we act calmly and give them room and respect and stillness, then they're going to go on their way and they don't want to have a confrontation with us," he told the outlet.

Meanwhile, the video of the rescue has gone viral with people praising the snake catcher for his good work.