Driver fights off deadly snake but gets stopped for speeding, Australia video shows

An Australian man says he was never happier to be stopped for speeding.

The man was driving on a highway at 60 mph when suddenly he spotted a snake slithering around his legs, according to Queensland police. Then it began wrapping around the driver and attacking the seat between his legs, police say.

“And the more I moved my leg ... it just started to wrap around me,” said the man, referred to only as Jimmy by police. “Its head just started striking at the chair between my legs.”

This wasn’t just any snake. It was an eastern brown snake, a highly venomous creature that’s among the deadliest in the world and known for having a “bad temper,” according to Australian Geographic. Brown snakes cause more deaths than other species in the country.

The driver fought the snake with a work knife and seat belt while braking to stop his car before finally killing it.

“Fearing he had already been bitten and his life was in danger, Jimmy believed he had no other option but to kill the snake and take it with him to hospital,” police said.

That’s when a police officer caught Jimmy speeding along the highway. He quickly realized the man had more than just another “colorful tale” as an excuse for speeding.

“A brown snake or a tiger snake is in the back of the ute,” the man said. “I think it has bitten me. It was in the car with me.”

The police officer found the dead snake in the back of the vehicle, confirming the driver’s story, video shows. Then the officer called for paramedics, who determined the driver wasn’t bitten but suffering from shock.

“It was pretty terrifying,” he said. “I’ve never been so happy to see red and blue lights.”

This story was originally published July 7, 2020 at 3:55 PM with the headline "Driver fights off deadly snake but gets stopped for speeding, Australia video shows."