Bethune knew searing leg pain was snake bite
A Kiwi conservationist bitten by a venomous snake in South America was stepping over a pile of leaf litter when he felt a ‘‘bang in his calf’’. Pete Bethune was working in the jungle in Costa Rica’s Peninsula de Osa National Park when he was bitten by a deadly fer-de-lance snake. He managed to get himself out of the jungle, back to a boat and to the Golfito Hospital. Bethune told TVNZ from his hospital bed that he ‘‘knew right away it was a snake’’.
‘‘He got a good bite, got a tonne of poison in me, and straight away I went into shock. My leg is so sore, even now. It’s sort of getting quite big ... My leg gets this lightning bolt [of pain] go through it.’’
Larisa Kellett, spokeswoman for Bethune’s non-profit Earthrace, said early yesterday that she was still waiting to talk directly to Bethune’s doctor but he was receiving good care.
‘‘They’re really doing their best for him.’’
His twin brother, Barry Bethune, who lives in Southland, said he could be out of hospital within four days.
Pete Bethune was showering, eating and cracking bad jokes again, despite his leg being swollen to twice its normal size. The poison had reached his groin area, he said.
Barry Bethune said he was used to getting bad news about his twin, and when he heard about the snake bite he never thought it could be the death of his brother.
Pete Bethune had a memorandum of understanding with the Costa Rican government for surveillance work and would stay in Central America for another year, Barry Bethune said.
Pete Bethune told Kellett he was thankful for the messages of support coming in from all over the world.
The hospital had asked for people to stop calling them, as they were getting too many calls, Kellett said.
After the bite, Bethune was able to take a short video of the snake to help doctors identify it.
Bethune was tough and fit and initially was able to move after the bite, Kellett said. However, his condition worsened as he got out of the jungle.
He had to be piggy-backed to the shore, where they waited for a boat.
It is believed Bethune was patrolling for illegal gold miners, who are a serious issue in the national park.
‘‘It’s one of the most biodiverse areas on the planet. Pete was working alongside local rangers, who are sadly very under-funded, and facing an uphill battle,’’ Kellett said.
‘‘These miners are usually armed. I more thought I’d get a call that he’d been shot than bitten by a snake.’’