Woman Spots Venomous Snake Next To Feet While Driving Car, Jumps Out Of Vehicle With Children

A woman traveling in a car with her family was shocked to see a snake next to her feet while driving. The incident took place while the family was returning to Picton, New Zealand, after vacation last Monday.

While returning from a long-weekend getaway, the unidentified woman, traveling along with her two daughters — aged nine and seven — and husband, found a snake near her feet while she was driving. The woman managed to stop the car on the roadside with the help of her husband through thick traffic. All the passengers then "jumped out of the car" and the husband alerted the police.

In a Facebook post Tuesday, the Native Wildlife Rescue said, “Highway patrol arrived promptly and not only provided a calming influence in a traumatic situation but transported the mother and children to the Mittagong shopping center.”

“On arrival of the (wildlife) rescuer, the snake was spotted briefly on the floor in the rear of the vehicle. It was highly alert and disappeared under the rear seat. The next sighting was also fleeting, as the snake disappeared up behind the dashboard," the post read.

The rescuers faced difficulty in retrieving the snake from the vehicle as it was parked on the side of a busy highway and the vibrations and noises made it impossible to locate it. It was later reported that the car was driven to another spot with the snake in the dashboard as a quiet, safe environment was required to spot it. The snake was finally captured after almost five-and-a-half-hour of struggle.

Further investigation into the matter revealed that the children had picked up a sun-bleached cow skull and had placed it on the front seat floor of the vehicle. On closer inspection, it was evident that the skull had a brain cavity where the snake could have been hiding.