News / Regional
Cobra snake kills 5-year-old boy
21 Feb 2016 at 19:44hrs | Views
A FIVE-year-old boy died after a cobra snake coiled itself around him and bit him twice on his chest at Nukane village near Lutho area, in Lupane, Matabeleland North last week Monday.
The boy who was in Grade Zero is said to have been sleeping in a hut with his siblings when the incident occurred around 7.30pm.
It is alleged the snake crawled by the wall next to where the young boy was sleeping and made its way into the blankets.
"It struck the boy twice on the chest and coiled itself onto the boy. His parents, who were sleeping in the next hut were awoken by his loud screams and rushed to the hut only to discover their child tangled up by the snake," said the sources.
A neighbour was called to the scene by one of the parents and managed to strike the snake with a spear so it would let go of the child.
"The neighbour managed to kill the snake with his spear and the parents called for an ambulance immediately afterwards but due to the delay, they decided to carry the boy and meet the ambulance on the road.
"The ambulance finally came around 10pm and took the boy to St Luke's Hospital," said the source.
On arrival at the hospital, the boy was declared dead.
"The matter left villagers utterly shocked. His parents are very distraught by what happened, the mother is inconsolable and to make matters worse the ambulance delayed," said the source.
The boy who was in Grade Zero is said to have been sleeping in a hut with his siblings when the incident occurred around 7.30pm.
It is alleged the snake crawled by the wall next to where the young boy was sleeping and made its way into the blankets.
"It struck the boy twice on the chest and coiled itself onto the boy. His parents, who were sleeping in the next hut were awoken by his loud screams and rushed to the hut only to discover their child tangled up by the snake," said the sources.
A neighbour was called to the scene by one of the parents and managed to strike the snake with a spear so it would let go of the child.
"The neighbour managed to kill the snake with his spear and the parents called for an ambulance immediately afterwards but due to the delay, they decided to carry the boy and meet the ambulance on the road.
"The ambulance finally came around 10pm and took the boy to St Luke's Hospital," said the source.
On arrival at the hospital, the boy was declared dead.
"The matter left villagers utterly shocked. His parents are very distraught by what happened, the mother is inconsolable and to make matters worse the ambulance delayed," said the source.
Source - Radio dialogue
