SAMUT PRAKAN — A 64-year-old woman in Samut Prakan Province narrowly escaped death by strangulation from a large python late Tuesday night after being ambushed from behind while washing dishes in her home.
This shocking incident occurred shortly after 10 PM on September 17, in a rented room of a five-unit house in Soi Suksawat 84, Soi Song Phi Nong, Moo 1, Pak Klong Bang Pla Kot Subdistrict, Phra Samut Chedi District, Samut Prakan Province. Ms. Arom Arunrot, 64, was nearly exhausted when rescue workers broke down her door to reach her.
Everyone was stunned to see the woman being constricted around her midsection by a giant python. It took great effort to pry the snake off her, taking more than 30 minutes before it loosened its grip. Once released, the snake quickly slithered away into the forest area behind the house, evading capture as rescuers focused on providing first aid to Ms. Arom and rushing her to the hospital.
Police Sergeant Anusorn Wongmalee from the Phra Samut Chedi Police Station recounted that when they arrived, they called out to Ms. Arom and knocked on the door, but received no response. After hearing faint groans, they decided to break down the door, only to find the shocking scene of the python constricting the woman, who appeared weak with pale hands and feet.
Later, when Ms. Arom’s condition improved, she explained that she works as a housekeeper at a children’s hospital in Bangkok and had been renting this room for many years, living with her husband until his death in November 2023, after which she lived alone. The area behind her room is a bamboo forest with a pond.
On the night of the incident, she returned from work, ate dinner, and around 8:30 PM went to wash dishes at the back of the room. While standing there, she felt something bite her thigh. Initially thinking it was a water monitor, she looked down to find a giant python. She tried to grab its head to remove it, but the snake wrapped around her, causing her to fall and roll on the floor. She struggled with the snake for over two hours to no avail.
“I tried calling out to my neighbors and anyone nearby, but no one heard me. I thought I wouldn’t survive and would surely become the snake’s meal. In a final attempt, I shouted as loud as I could until someone passing by heard me and quickly called the police and rescue unit for help. I’ve never experienced anything like this in my life,” Arom said.
Rescue workers estimated that this enormous python was likely over 4 meters long and weighed no less than 20 kilograms. Its escape has left residents in the area fearful, especially after seeing how this 64-year-old woman nearly became its prey, reminiscent of news reports about two women in Indonesia’s Sulawesi province who were consumed by pythons in June and July of this year.
In another incident in 2018 reported by BBC News, a woman in Sulawesi also fell victim to a reticulated python. These massive serpents, known to reach lengths exceeding 10 meters (32 feet), are formidable predators with incredible strength.
Reticulated pythons employ an ambush strategy, coiling around their prey and applying crushing force. As the victim exhales, the python tightens its grip, leading to death by suffocation or cardiac arrest within minutes.
These snakes consume their prey whole, aided by extremely flexible jaw ligaments that allow them to engulf large animals. However, when it comes to humans, our shoulder blades pose a challenge due to their rigid structure, as noted by Mary-Ruth Low, a reticulated python expert from Wildlife Reserves Singapore.
While pythons primarily target mammals, they occasionally devour reptiles, including crocodiles. Their diet evolves with their size; smaller pythons feed on rats, but larger specimens seek more substantial prey for better caloric payoff. This can include animals as large as pigs or even cows.
Pythons occasionally misjudge their prey’s size, sometimes with fatal consequences. In 2005, a Burmese python in Florida attempted to swallow an alligator whole, resulting in a gruesome scene where both animals perished.
Despite their voracious nature, these snakes can be surprisingly selective. When suitable prey is scarce, they can endure extended periods with minimal food, patiently waiting for an appropriately sized meal to cross their path.
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