Steel Toe Boots, Safety Glasses and Silicone Implants

A health and safety e-mail was circulated at work today on snake awareness.  It provided images of common snakes found in the work environs, what to do if you see a snake, what to do if you’re bitten by a snake, and various snake alert hotlines to call.*

I briefly contemplated forwarding a link to the below news article on the Israeli model who walked away relatively unharmed from a snake bite courtesy of her silicone implants:

"[Update] Snake Dies of Silicone Poisoning After Biting Model's Fake Breast 

It was another trip to the Garden of Eden cut short for one legless reptile.  Israeli model Orit Fox was attempting to lick a snake during a publicity stunt for radio DJ Shmulik Tavar when the lucky serpent, presumably aroused, lunged forward and bit Fox's fake breast, sending witnesses into a frenzy.

Fox, who is rumored to have the largest bosom in all of Israel, was hurried to a hospital outside Jerusalem where she received a tetanus shot and was later discharged. 

As for the snake, puckering up with a supermodel proved to be the kiss of death. The creature succumbed to silicone poisoning shortly after the incident.

Update: It appears that AOL Weird News was snake-bitten along with other major news organizations. Reports now indicate that the snake that bit model Orit Fox's breast did not die of silicon poisoning.

A video of the bite was posted on the gossip blog Oh No They Didn't on March 3, followed by the quip: "The snake later died from silicone poisoning."

That statement -- presumably posted in jest -- was then reported as a fact in publications around the world. But animal experts now say it's impossible that the snake died of silicon poisoning, mainly because snakes don't suck blood when they bite.

"Snakes can eat some really sick animals and not contract mammalian diseases. So I have not heard of a snake getting sick or dying after biting a human," Mark Kilby, owner of the Luray Zoo and Luray Reptile Center, told Life's Little Mysteries. 

"I can't see the boa constrictor that bit that model getting any of the contents of the material from the implant, being silicone or saline, in its mouth to cause any ill effect to the boa."

It's unclear what -- if anything -- killed the snake, though sources told Discover Magazine that the snake might have perished when it was yanked off of Fox's chest.

We apologize for the mistake and would like to assure our readers that we never intend to peddle in snake oil."
Courtesy of AOL News

Who would have known that breast implants can form a useful part of one’s PPE, along with steel toe boots, hard hats, flame retardant pants (preferably low rise and boot cut) and safety goggles?  It seems like Chavez should stop trash talking breast implants.  Safety first!

*Courtesy of the health and safety bulletin, I found a new job opportunity to go along with Waggyl Watching, Marine Mammal Observer and Native Animals Who Have Been Mortally Injured by Heavy Mortal Equipment Killer with Rocks: registered snake catcher.  

Australian Headlines

Every week at work we have a meeting that starts with a series of safety shares.  Through these I have learned about some of Australia's deadliest animals, including snakes, spiders and sharks.  Some safety shares are about the latest beach to be closed from a shark spotting while others talk about the latest deadly insect that they've been seeing an abundance of in their gardens.  One share involved my manager telling everybody how he had steered slightly out of his way to run over a snake in the road.  He thought he was doing his town a favor, since he was driving by a playground.  A lengthy discussion ensued as to whether or not he had helped or harmed the community as other snakes might fight over the new territory and become more aggressive.

Stories like these aren't uncommon, as evidenced by some of the latest local headlines:

• A Darwin schoolgirl reached into her backpack to find a snake, luckily a non-venomous variety.
•  A man working on his computer at home, barefoot, was bitten on his toe by a western brown snake and killed.

No wonder we see signs like these everywhere: 

That photograph was taken during my recent visit to Cape Leeuwin, a lighthouse on the most south-westerly point of Australia, where the Indian Ocean meets the Southern Ocean.  After paying admission for the grounds, the groundsman pulled out a series of photographs of snakes that can be found on the property, including the deadliest snake in Australia.  Great way to kick-off the visit!