A ROADSIDE toilet stop ended in pain, embarrassment and almost death for a tourist when a highly venomous snake bit the end of his penis.
The deadly brown snake slithered between his legs and lunged at his manhood as he crouched on a roadside near Laura, 300km northwest of Cairns, about a month ago.
Details of the incident only came to light yesterday after they were confirmed by a paramedic.
"It certainly had a swipe at him," an ambulance spokesman said yesterday.
"But it didn’t envenomate him.
"As it came through it must have got a bit of a shock."
The snake beat a hasty retreat, leaving its victim with a scratch, vomiting and abdomen pain.
Emergency workers raced to the scene to treat the man.
The wound was wrapped in plastic in case poison had penetrated the skin but medical staff gave the man the all-clear after conducting tests.
He was taken to Cooktown Hospital where he spent a night recovering.
The ambulance spokesman described him as "lucky", given his near encounter with one of Australia’s most poisonous snakes.
"I think he was a bit shocked and embarrassed," he said.
