A FedEx driver in Nebraska is being praised for springing into motion after coming head to head with a rattlesnake at a house owner’s door.
The driving force, Matt Govier, was delivering a bundle to a buyer’s dwelling in Dawson County earlier this month when he seen the venomous serpent in a nook close to the entrance steps of the house, ABC affiliate NTV reported.
Ring digital camera footage from the house, shared with NTV, confirmed the snake curled up in a nook by the entrance door proper earlier than Govier arrived.
Whereas most would have fled, the quick-thinking driver instantly went into the home-owner’s storage to seize a shovel and a rake, which he used to kill the 36-inch-long prairie rattlesnake, in accordance with NTV.
The terrifying prairie rattlesnake is certainly one of many rattlers present in america. They’ll develop as much as about 5 toes lengthy, in accordance with the Nationwide Park Service.
After slaughtering the slithering invader, Govier eliminated the animal’s physique from the premises and texted the home-owner, Christie Jones, to let her know concerning the shut encounter.
“I hope you didn’t have a pet rattlesnake at your entrance door, as a result of I killed him,” he wrote.
“Sorry concerning the blood,” Govier added.
Jones stated in a Fb publish that her 12-year-old daughter, Kyler, had stepped exterior the entrance door simply minutes earlier than the “Anaconda sized” rattlesnake was noticed by Govier.
Prairie rattlesnakes, often called ambush predators, monitor their prey utilizing thermosensitive pits on their heads, in accordance with the Nationwide Park Service. They’re identified for being masters at discovering well-hidden spots underneath thick prairie grasses till their prey comes inside putting distance.
“Anybody who actually is aware of me is aware of how extremely fearful I’m of any form of snake,” Jones stated within the social media publish from Aug. 11.
Jones advised NTV that she’s “very grateful” for Govier’s courageous deed. She praised him of their textual content message trade, as seen in her Fb publish, and insisted to NTV that he deserves to be named FedEx’s worker of the 12 months for “taking good care of enterprise.”
The Nationwide Park Service urges individuals to offer rattlesnakes “loads of house and never deal with them” to keep away from being bitten.
“Bites usually tend to occur in case you provoke or try to catch a rattlesnake,” the park service says.