Wal-Mart Rattlesnake Victim Issues Warning
Man: 'I Have No Doubt This Will Happen Again'
POSTED: Thursday, February 22, 2007
UPDATED: 11:26 pm EST February 22,
2007
ROCKLEDGE, Fla. -- A Central Florida man who may never be able to use his finger again after being bitten by a poisonous snake while shopping at a Wal-Mart garden center said the retailer has ignored his calls for a response to the incident and said other customers will be bitten in the future, according to Local 6 News partner Florida Today.
IMAGES: More strange stories, images
"What I would like to happen is to have Wal-Mart acknowledge this is an ongoing travesty," John Page, a 41-year-old air-conditioning salesman said Thursday. "I have no doubt this will happen again."In a news conference at Wuesthoff Medical Center-Rockledge, where he was hospitalized for one day in November, Page said he is concerned with the "safety issue" and is warning the public.He said that, upon researching the issue, he and his Rockledge attorney, Scott Baughan, discovered at least seven other cases where customers shopping in Wal-Mart’s garden centers had been bitten by pygmy rattlesnakes -- a poisonous snake native to Florida and other parts of the South -- dating back to 1987.The most recent incident, other than his own, occurred last July in Sanford, Page said.Wal-Mart officials were not immediately available for comment.Page said an 18-inch long pygmy rattler bit him on the small finger of his right hand on the evening of Nov. 18, during a shopping expedition at the Viera Wal-Mart Center for some houseplants.Reaching down for a second pot, he said, he felt a sudden pain, and after lifting up his arm, discovered the rattler "still hanging on to my finger.""I freaked out a little and tried to flip it off me," he recalled, but in the process "stepped backwards on to my shopping cart," falling on to some patio stones and injuring his back.Ever since the incident, Page said, he has undergone physical therapy for his back three times a week, while awaiting surgery on his baby finger, which he no longer can move."It's locked into place," he said, holding the injured hand up high. "And it's getting worse and worse."Wuesthoff spokeswoman Lisa Crites said the hospital had no connection to the incident, other than lending its support to Page.“He was treated at our hospital and released, and we said we would be happy to host this event,” she said.
IMAGES: More strange stories, images "What I would like to happen is to have Wal-Mart acknowledge this is an ongoing travesty," John Page, a 41-year-old air-conditioning salesman said Thursday. "I have no doubt this will happen again."In a news conference at Wuesthoff Medical Center-Rockledge, where he was hospitalized for one day in November, Page said he is concerned with the "safety issue" and is warning the public.He said that, upon researching the issue, he and his Rockledge attorney, Scott Baughan, discovered at least seven other cases where customers shopping in Wal-Mart’s garden centers had been bitten by pygmy rattlesnakes -- a poisonous snake native to Florida and other parts of the South -- dating back to 1987.The most recent incident, other than his own, occurred last July in Sanford, Page said.Wal-Mart officials were not immediately available for comment.Page said an 18-inch long pygmy rattler bit him on the small finger of his right hand on the evening of Nov. 18, during a shopping expedition at the Viera Wal-Mart Center for some houseplants.Reaching down for a second pot, he said, he felt a sudden pain, and after lifting up his arm, discovered the rattler "still hanging on to my finger.""I freaked out a little and tried to flip it off me," he recalled, but in the process "stepped backwards on to my shopping cart," falling on to some patio stones and injuring his back.Ever since the incident, Page said, he has undergone physical therapy for his back three times a week, while awaiting surgery on his baby finger, which he no longer can move."It's locked into place," he said, holding the injured hand up high. "And it's getting worse and worse."Wuesthoff spokeswoman Lisa Crites said the hospital had no connection to the incident, other than lending its support to Page.“He was treated at our hospital and released, and we said we would be happy to host this event,” she said.
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