MORGANTOWN, W.Va., June 21 (UPI) -- A western Pennsylvania man who had to walk for an hour after being bitten by a rattlesnake became severely ill, an emergency worker said.
Rick Adobato, head of Fayette County Emergency Services, told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette the man, a 47-year-old resident of Perryopolis, southeast of Pittsburgh, was on a hike with family members Sunday when he was bitten on the hand. The snake struck when he bent down to pick up his walking stick.
The family was in a wooded area out of reach of cellphone service and getting back to the car took an hour. They had to drive for some distance before they could call for help.
The man was airlifted to Ruby Memorial Hospital in Morgantown, W. Va. Adobato said by Tuesday he was in stable condition but still being treated in the intensive care unit.
Timber rattlesnakes are common in western Pennsylvania, and Adobato said one or two bites a year are reported in Fayette County, which is on the West Virginia line.
"This is one of the worst we've seen in a long time," he said.
