Snakes in Courthouse Pose a Slippery Situation to Court Workers
A courthouse in Jackson, Miss., is trying to deal with snakes that found their way into the courthouse's basement.
Five DeKay's snakes, which are not poisonous and pose no threat to humans, were found in the basement of the Hinds County clerk's office.
Unfortunately, two of the small brown snakes were killed by accident after the office's filing system, which moves along tracks, rolled over them. Another snake was caught by maintenance workers put down sticky paper.
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The courthouse contacted a local snake expert and former zookeeper to deal with the small infestation.
Percy King explained that the snakes are often found indoors in spring after they awake from hibernation.
"A snake that size could squeeze through any little hole," King told the Associated Press.
This was not the first time that a serpent had found its way into a an area that it should not have been as they have been found in cars, houses and even on planes.
"Halfway to Papua New Guinea, passengers reported seeing a snake clinging to the wing," a Qantas spokesman told Reuters regarding a flight from Australia to Papua New Guinea.
That snake turned out to be a scrub python, which can grow as long as 28 feet; this one, however, was only nine feet long. While it's not known exactly how the snake managed to slither its way onto the aircraft without being detected before takeoff, there is a shrubbland surrounding the airport.
Thankfully it did not interfere with the flight or the mechanics of the plane, which was able to continue on its journey and make a safe landing in Port Moresby.
It's no surprise the reptile died, given that it battled nearly 500 mph wind and temperatures as low as -12 degrees Celsius, the Daily Mail reported. It attempted to tuck itself into safety under the plane's wing but repeatedly battled the strong wind and was forced into the freezing air.
"I felt quite sad for it really," passenger Robert Weber told The Sydney Morning Herald. "For the remainder of the trip he was trying to pull himself back into the plane. There was no panic. At no time did anyone stop to consider there might be others [snakes] on board."
