Chapter 3: Snake Bite

"What's the matter? Where are you hurt?" Stephen asked the slim woman who was lying across the track, moaning in obvious pain. She too was dressed in shorts, t-shirt and joggers, with a bum bag around her waist. He quickly saw that if he ignored the grimace of pain that was contorting her face; she was actually quite an attractive lady, probably around her mid 30s he guessed.

"I tripped on a tree root I think and twisted my ankle. It's badly sprained, I'm sure. It's really throbbing, but that's not the main problem. As I fell, I landed on a snake, a brown one I'm pretty certain and it bit my other leg" she told him her tale of woe.

Stephen instantly remembered the first aid drill for snake bites that he'd learned in the Army, his mind reciting the rules he had learned:

• Do NOT wash the area of the bite! It is extremely important to retain traces of venom for use with venom identification kits!

• Stop lymphatic spread - bandage firmly, splint and immobilise!

• Do NOT cut or excise the area or apply an arterial tourniquet! Both these measures are ineffective and may make the situation worse.

The lymphatic system, he remembered was responsible for systemic spread of most venoms. This could be reduced by the application of a firm bandage (as firm as one would put on a sprained ankle) over a folded pad placed over the bitten area. While firm, it should not be so tight that it stops blood flow to the limb or to congest the veins. He knew he had to start bandaging directly over the bitten area, ensuing that the pressure over the bite was firm and even. If there was enough bandage it should be extended up the leg, to delay spread of any venom that has already started to move centrally.

Immobility, he also remembered was best attained by application of a splint or sling, using a bandage or whatever was to hand to absolutely minimise all limb movement, while reassurance of the patient was vital. Although he knew it would have been highly preferable to bring transportation to the patient (rather than take her to his car), this was impossible given their isolation and the urgency of the situation, but he had to ensure she didn't walk or move the limb at all.

He also recalled that removal of the bandage would be associated with rapid systemic spread, hence once applied, it would be essential to wait until he got her to a fully-equipped medical treatment area before bandage removal could be attempted.

He looked at what he had available, seeing a couple of stout sticks nearby, but not much else that might help, so he whipped his t-shirt off and started ripping it into a bandage.

"Are you sure it was a brown snake?" was his first question.

"Yes, pretty certain. I'm fairly familiar with snakes and I've seen more than a few. The bite isn't hurting, though, just my other ankle that's badly twisted, which is really throbbing" she replied, adding "you can see some bruising and a little bit of bleeding where the snake bit me, but there's only some local swelling."

"Well that's pretty consistent with what I know of brown snake bites and we've got plenty of time to get you to a hospital" he tried to reassure her, but realising that time was critical if the bite was bad. He offered her a sip of water, comforting her as best as he could before adding "but it is essential to keep that leg still and immobilised and I've got to get a pressure bandage on it straight away."

"Shouldn't you wash the poison away first?" she asked.

"No, it's important not to, so the venom can be positively identified. Sorry, we don't have anything else to use and my t-shirt alone won't be enough. I'll be using it as the bandage, but we need a pad on the wound. Do you mind taking your shirt off so I can use it as a pad?"

Realising the seriousness of the situation, she didn't hesitate to pull her t-shirt off, leaving her small breasts well covered by her sports bra as she told him "guess you can see less than if I had my bikini top on."

Smiling at her at her, trying to keep her spirits up, he tried to make a joke out of what they were doing telling her "seeing you're taking you clothes off in front of me, I guess I better introduce myself; I'm Stephen."

"I'm Katherine and thanks for helping, but how are we getting to hospital?" she asked with a nervous laugh.

"As soon as I'm finished, I'll carry you to my car which should be less than a kilometre from here and then drive you to Calvary Hospital, if that's ok" he told her as he folded her shirt into a pad and applied to the wound, then wrapped it using his torn shirt as a bandage, incorporating the sticks either side as a splint.

"You can't carry me that far, I'll try and walk" she exclaimed.

"No, no, it's vital you don't walk. I'd normally use a fireman's carry, but you look light enough to carry in my arms if you put your arms around my neck and that way it will be easier to keep both legs still. Sorry I don't have enough shirt to bandage your sprained ankle as well, but at least it doesn't seem broken" I replied after finishing bandaging her bitten leg and quickly checking her other ankle.

Stephen bent his legs and gently lifted her up, holding her firmly against his chest as her arms snaked around behind his head to help support herself as much as possible.

"You're light as a feather, fortunately" he told her softly as she buried her head into his neck.

He didn't attempt to run, trying to keep her as immobile as possible, walking as quickly as he could though. Fortunately he was very familiar with the area, so was able to take the most direct route to his car, without taking time to work out where to go. Although he would have liked to have continued talking to her to keep her reassured, he knew that he would need all his energy to carry her that far, despite what he had told her and he realised that he would need all his breath.

He tried to distract himself from the strenuous effort by trying to peek at her breasts, but her bra covered everything all too tightly he decided. But from what he could see of her shoulders and tummy, not to mention her shapely, well toned legs, she was quite an attractive lady.

It felt a lot longer than the distance he had originally estimated, but probably wasn't, he thought. It had taken him almost 15 minutes to walk to his car, although stagger might have been more correct towards the end of the journey. He was never so glad to see anything as he was to see his car. It reminded him of his early military training drills, but he was a lot younger then.

He was really puffing, breathing heavily, by the time he reached his car. He felt as though his arms would drop off at any second as his muscles were burning something terrible, but he was determined to see this through.

Once he got to his car, he lifted his right knee to support her bottom, leaning against the car while he took his right hand off her to get his keys from his pocket. As soon as he had the door unlocked, he put her into the passenger seat and told her to remain still; he did up the seat belt, closed the door and raced around to the other side of his car.