Snake in the grass ends day at races
* Jared Lynch
* October 20, 2008
MEGAN McDonough had mixed luck at Hamilton races on the weekend. She was bitten by a snake — and then won fashions on the field.
Ms McDonough, 26, from Hawkesdale, north of Warrnambool, temporarily lost the use of one leg and was in intensive care.
The tiger snake had bitten her while she was parading for the event about 2.45pm on Saturday. Racegoers rushed to the aid of the mother of one.
One man ripped off his shirt for a bandage, and others used their ties to apply pressure to the wound.
Ms McDonough was in Hamilton Base Hospital's intensive care unit yesterday in a serious but stable condition.
Her mother, Julie McCullough, of Cairns, said it had been a terrifying ordeal.
"When I got the call on Saturday afternoon, I imagined the absolute worse," she said. "You wouldn't wish it on anyone. You hear of people having cerebral hemorrhages from tiger snake bites even after they have had the anti-venom. It's terrible."
Ms McDonough's legs were paralysed after the incident but yesterday she regained feeling in one.
Her mother said she was confident her daughter could make a full recovery.
"But she has a long way to go. The bite affects all your muscles."
Ms McDonough had two shots of anti-venom to treat the wound.
Although her weekend was turned upside down, she had some good news.
"She won the fashions on the field, so it wasn't all in vain," Ms McCullough said.
Hamilton Racing Club secretary John Donnelly described the incident as incredible.
"But we have swampy grasslands at one end of the track and unfortunately it is not uncommon to see a snake," he said.
Another source said the patient waited 20 minutes for an ambulance to come from town because racing rules say the track's ambulance cannot leave during races.
The source said the grass had been mown last Thursday and the snake had come from nowhere. A male contestant had jumped out of the way but Ms McDonough been bitten.
"I think she got a sympathy vote in the end but she was a very impressive, well-dressed, nice-looking young girl," the source said.
