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A rattlesnake in California.<\/p>\n
Anvay Jawadekar \/ 500px\/Getty Images<\/p>\n
A Southern California woman has died after a\u00a0rattlesnake<\/a>\u00a0bite, marking the second fatal snake bite in the state since the start of the year.<\/p>\n Emergency responders were dispatched to a trail in the Wildwood Regional Park area of Thousand Oaks for a \u201cremote rescue\u201d shortly before noon March 14, after reports that a female hiker had been bitten by a rattlesnake.\u00a0<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Ventura County Fire Department spokesperson Andrew Dowd told SFGATE by phone that firefighters and paramedics responded by ground and air, deploying a helicopter through a joint sheriff-fire air unit while additional crews hiked into the trail to reach the hiker. Once they reached her, crews administered medical care before she was evacuated from the scene and flown to a nearby hospital.<\/p>\n Moorpark resident Gabriela Bautista, 46,\u00a0died five days later on March 19, James Baroni, a senior medical examiner with the Ventura County Medical Examiner\u2019s Office, confirmed to\u00a0SFGATE by phone. Her cause of death was listed as \u201crattlesnake venom toxicity\u201d and the manner was ruled an accident.\u00a0<\/p>\n Fatal snake bites are incredibly rare in the U.S., with about five deaths<\/a>\u00a0reported annually.\u00a0<\/p>\n Make SFGATE a preferred source so your search results prioritize writing by actual people, not AI.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Add Preferred Source<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n There has been more rattlesnake bite activity than normal in Southern California, according to authorities.\u00a0<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n The steep trail that leads to Paradise Falls in Wildwood Regional Park in Thousand Oaks, Calif.\u00a0<\/p>\n Al Seib\/Los Angeles Times\/Getty Images<\/p>\n Ventura County has responded to four rattlesnake bite calls since March 14, Dowd said, including one involving a teenage girl on a trail near the Wendy Drive trailhead in Newbury Park.<\/p>\n In 2025, the agency handled nine reported rattlesnake bite incidents in total, with the first occurring in February and the last being reported on Oct. 6,\u00a0Dowd said. In March a 25-year-old man died weeks after being\u00a0bitten by a rattlesnake<\/a>\u00a0while mountain biking in Irvine.\u00a0<\/p>\n Dowd declined to characterize the recent cases as a surge, noting that responders could \u201cvery easily\u201d go months without being dispatched to another rattlesnake bite.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Nick Ferrari, a ranger with the Conejo Open Space Conservation Agency, told SFGATE by phone that serious rattlesnake bite incidents are usually uncommon in the region.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s incredibly rare, to be honest,\u201d Ferrari said, adding that in 10 years as a ranger he\u2019s never \u201chad a call with fire dispatch due to a rattlesnake bite.\u201d<\/p>\n Rattlesnakes are more frequently seen as temperatures rise in spring and summer, Ferrari explained. Sightings tend to increase during cooler parts of the day, such as midmorning or late afternoon.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201c[Rattlesnakes] are pretty docile, unless you mess with them,\u201d Ferrari noted. \u201cIf they feel threatened, that\u2019s when they would strike.\u201d<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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