Title: Python stuck in drain
Article By: Chai Hung Yin
Source: http://www.asiaone.com/News/The%2BNew%2BPaper/Story/A1Story20101110-246665.html
JURONG East residents who spotted a python near their block on Sunday morning tried to take matters into their own hand.
They made a lot of noise to shoo the reptile away and some even tried to catch the python themselves.
But all they did was scare the 2m-long python into squeezing into and hiding in a pipe nearby.
The python was finally rescued by the Animal Concerns Research and Education Society (Acres) after four hours.
Mr Tan Gim Chay, 58, an engineer, said he was on his way to the market at about 9am when he heard from his friends that a big python had been seen about two blocks from his flat.
He quickly went home and grabbed his camera. But by the time he rushed to the scene, he saw the people from Acres were already there.
"When I reached there, I saw that the entrance to the pipe where the python had slithered into was covered up with a gunnysack," he said.
The pipe had covered the pipe with a gunnysack.
Initially, the snake was spotted near the drain, he said. But the commotion then made the python take refuge in a pipe, not knowing how else to escape.
Mr Hafizzan Shah, 25, an animal care officer who was part of the two-member rescue team from Acres, said they were alerted around 9.30am of a python being spotted at the void deck near the lift lobby at Block 319, Jurong East Street 31.
He said: "We did a site survey and noted that there was no other escape route for the snake."
They then had to drill open one side of the cement over the pipe and cover it with a towel.
He said: "We cannot rescue a snake by pulling its tail because it will hurt its spine. So we had to cut the pipe above the ground on the other end to reduce the stress on the snake."
They had earlier covered the entrance into the pipe with a gunnysack.
Mr Hafizzan said: "This creates a dark space for the snake to slide into and it was the only way out for the python."
When they finally managed to get hold of the reptile, they had to coax the python to slide out by itself.
Mr Hafizzan said: "The initial plan was to drill the whole pipe out, but it would cause too much stress on the python. So we did a waiting game instead."
After drilling, it took about an hour to coax the snake to come out from hiding.
Mr Hafizzan, who was seen holding on to the tail portion of the reptile, said: "I was helping to manoeuvre the snake to head towards the right direction, which was the entrance with the gunnysack."
He said that normally, a python would turn back to attack whoever catches hold of its tail.
"But this python was in a difficult situation. We had to apply a bit of pressure on it to make it go the right way."
As the drama heightened, some 30 curious onlookers, including children and elderly, had gathered.
Mr Tan said: "There was a lot of excitement. Many people where whipping out their phones to take pictures."
Finally, the python managed to slither out from hiding.
While his colleague, Ms Charlene Tan, 30, grabbed hold of its head with a white towel, Mr Hafizzan injected a microchip into its tail.
He said: "It is to keep track of pythons that have been rescued as well as to keep track of its population."
The drama was finally over at 1.30pm.
But Mr Hafizzan advised people to let the experts do the work, or call the Acres 24-hour hotline: 9783-7782.
My opinions:
Firstly, i thought it was terifying that a Python can actually be spotted in such a crowded and open area -- at the void deck of a HDB flat in Jurong East. I was certainly amazed that people were acutally not afraid of the humongous, scary looking 2m long reptile which has the ability to hurt you. If this ever happend to me, i'm not ashamed to say that i might just 'escape' and mind my own business before calling for help somewhere about 2kilometers away.
Secondly, it is comforting to know that the people from Animal Concerns Research and Education Society actually took extra care of the giant reptile. To be honest, i didnt expect them to go to such extends to save the snake (Drilling the pipe to create more space for the snake to escape). They even risked their lives and waited for more than an hour, coaxing the reptile to finally make its way into the gunnysack and be saved from the inappropriate environment. I mean, wouldn't they feel nervous? Or anxious? Don't they have feelings?! I just didn't know that such matters are so taken care of in Singapore.
Lastly, (trying to be in the reptile's shoes) it must be a horrifying experience being in such an environment and being in the center of attention. With no escape, and all the provoking of the public, it was quite rare that the 2m Python did not attack.
Done by: KAHMIN ;)
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