25-05-2025
Killer black mamba was ‘as strong as a python', says KZN snake catcher
Killer black mamba was 'as strong as a python', says KZN snake catcher
Three family dogs — two Yorkshire terriers and a Jack Russell terrier mix — were killed recently in Ashburton, KZN, by a black mamba, triggering a tense rescue during peak-hour traffic and a race against time involving a 20-year-old snake catcher.
The Witness reports that what was meant to be a quiet drive home turned into a high-stakes mission for Akil Ramsurran, who had been returning from Durban when he received the emergency call.
The 2.4m black mamba, injured and under threat of being shot, needed immediate rescue.
'Just after 17:00, [a message] popped up on the snake catcher group that a suspected black mamba had bitten and killed three dogs.
'No one else was available and the homeowner was threatening to shoot it.
'I was heading past that way from Durban and said I would go.
'Craig phoned me and said he would meet me there, which helped as I was feeling nervous with the snake being injured,' says Ramsurran, referring to fellow snake catcher Craig Fry.
Caught in rush-hour traffic, Ramsurran's journey took nearly an hour.
When he arrived, Fry had already been on site monitoring the scene.
According to Fry, one dog had died 50m away from the others, suggesting the dogs had chased the snake from the house.
The mamba, acting in self-defence, bit the first dog and tried to flee, but was pursued into a cluttered shed where the other two dogs were also fatally bitten.
Inside the shed, Ramsurran spotted the tail of the mamba.
'It went haywire,' he says, describing the chaos as he used his tongs to grasp the snake.
'That thing was fat and seriously as strong as a 3m python,' says Fry.
With no bucket on hand, the two used a bag to contain the injured snake.
At one point, the mamba wrapped itself around Ramsurran's arm and torso.
Ramsurran contacted renowned snake rescuer Nick Evans for guidance before transporting the mamba to Durban, where Evans and Carla Goede took over its rehabilitation.
The snake has since recovered and will be released soon.
Ramsurran, who has been fascinated by snakes since childhood, credited his mentor Dean Boswell for guiding him.
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