Acorn file photo
A 46-year-old woman has died after being bitten by a rattlesnake in the Wildwood Regional Park area in Thousand Oaks, the Ventura Medical Examiner’s Office said.
The woman, who was bitten March 14, was one of two people to have recently received rattlesnake bites in the Thousand Oaks area.
Ventura County firefighters also responded to the Wendy Trail in the Newbury Park area to reports of a snake bite at around 7:30 p.m. March 20. Although the fire department could not give identifying information due to privacy concerns, Joel Council, who runs the Safety for Citizens Facebook page, reported from the scene that a teenage girl was bitten when she fell off a bicycle not far from the Wendy Trailhead located at the end of Wendy Drive at Potrero Road.
Firefighters hiked onto the trail and were able to remove the girl with the help of a lightweight wheeled stretcher, VCFD spokesperson Andrew Dowd said. She was taken to Los Robles Regional Medical Center in stable condition with minor injuries, Dowd said.
The fatal Wildwood bite took place about a week earlier, at around 11:40 a.m. March 14. One of the county’s helicopters responded and airlifted the person to Los Robles Regional Medical Center, according to Dowd, who did not know the person’s condition.
The woman died March 19, the medical examiner’s office said.
The bites come shortly following the death of a 25-year-old man in early March due to a bite sustained while mountain biking in February in Irvine.
Kory Prindle, park ranger supervisor for the Conejo Open Space Conservation Agency, said snake sightings began a little earlier than usual this year, likely due to the high temperatures the Conejo Valley has experienced recently.
“I don’t think we’re getting more reports than usual, but they are a little earlier,” he said. “Usually rattlesnakes come out with the warm weather.”
While the area has many rattlesnakes—primarily Southern Pacific rattlesnakes identified by their olive green, brown, black or gray patterned bodies and triangular heads—bites are uncommon, Prindle said.
To help prevent them, COSCA has posted signs on kiosks near trails and rangers do their part to make hikers and bikers aware of the possibility of snakes on the trails.
“We’re always chatting with hikers or warning them this time of year,” he said. “We tell them to be aware, especially in the morning and at dusk … and to make sure they don’t put their hands or feet anywhere they can’t see.”
Other local agencies are helping to spread the word. On March 23, the City of Moorpark issued tips on staying safe during peak rattlesnake season, which in normal years generally runs through October.
If you see a rattlesnake, keep a safe distance, stay calm and slowly back away, the city’s tip sheet says. Do not attempt to handle the snake.
Dowd also advised hikers to wear boots and long pants, walk on clearly marked trails and avoid walking in tall grass.