It was literally a roof raising experience when another forest cobra was found lurking in a Richards Bay complex over the weekend.

Snake catcher Peter Daniel told the ZO that this was the second reptile of its kind to be found in Richards Bay within a month.

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The forest cobra is one of Africa’s largest cobras, whose venom contains neurotoxic and cytotoxic toxins that attack the nervous system and destroy tissue.

Homeowners made the surprising discovery when they spotted the cobra’s head popping out from underneath their roof.

The 1,5-metre snake clearly made itself comfortable and it required an elaborate rescue plan which took around three hours over two days and the removal of roof tiles to solve the problem.

‘I received the call on Saturday afternoon. When I got there the snake had already moved into the roof, which I could not access because there was no trap door.

‘I told the homeowners to keep an eye out for it the next day and to call me when they saw the snake again, as it would have to come out because of the heat build-up in the roof,’ said Daniel.

As predicted, he received a call on Monday morning when the unwanted visitor reappeared.

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‘We decided to lift up roof tiles and search for the snake. After three hours of searching, I started to tap on the plastic sheeting from underneath when the snake decided to move over the top of my head.’

Needing help, Daniel called in a friend.

‘We then took a hosepipe and slowly pushed it in where the snake was, forcing it to come towards me for the catch.

*For snake removals, Daniel can be contacted on 076 0516420.

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