Snake bite victim Pete Bethune leaves Costa Rica hospital Sun, 10 Jan 2021, 2:11PM
Kiwi conservationist Pete Bethune has been discharged from hospital after a snake bite that nearly claimed his life. Photo / File
Snake bite victim Pete Bethune leaves Costa Rica hospital Sun, 10 Jan 2021, 2:11PM
Kiwi conservationist Pete Bethune has walked out of a hospital in Costa Rica today after a deadly snakebite almost claimed his life two weeks ago.
He was bitten by the highly venomous Fer De Lance snake in a South American jungle just after Christmas.
Initially fearing he wouldn t make it out alive, Bethune managed a difficult three-hour trek, clambering and dragging himself through unforgiving terrain to reach his boat.
He was “super looking forward to getting back on the ship and it would be amazing to go home, he said. Bethune said his first few days in hospital were a blur. He was on morphine, and he felt lucid, telling viewers that it was as though you were aware of what was going on but it was “dream like”. The doctor had given him the highest level of antivenom he had ever given a patient – a record that Bethune was quite chuffed about achieving.
Supplied
An image of Pete Bethune s escape from a Costa Rican forest after being bitten by a snake.