Woman Finds Deadly Snake at Her Feet in Car: 'Unexpected Hitchhiker'

Nothing says welcome to Australia like finding a deadly snake at your feet as you drive out of the airport parking lot.

On Wednesday, snake catcher Tim Hudson was called in to remove the eastern brown snake from a car at the Golden Coast airport in Queensland, Australia.

"The owner of the car was picking up a friend at the airport and as her friend got into the passenger side of the car she noticed a snake at her feet as they were leaving the car park," Hudson, of Hudson Snake Catching, told Newsweek. "They immediately stopped the car in the car park and got out."

In a Facebook post, Hudson described the snake as an "unexpected hitchhiker." This "hitchhiker" is the second most venomous snake in the world and is responsible for more snake bite fatalities than any other species in Australia.

Eastern brown snakes tend to shy away from humans, but can be very defensive and will often bite if they feel threatened. Their venom contains a powerful neurotoxin, which progressively paralyzes the nerves of the victim's heart, lungs and diaphragm, causing them to suffocate.

After searching for an hour, Hudson spotted the snake under the passenger seat carpet lining. "We had to remove the lining with the owner's permission to scare it out into the open," he said. "We closed up the car, turned it on and blasted the air on heat in an attempt to overheat the snake and encourage it to come out of hiding and we were then able to grab it behind the driver's seat.

"As we knew it was a deadly eastern brown, we used our leather glove so we could safely grab it in the confined space without having to aim for a tail grab."

Hudson said that it was not that uncommon to find snakes inside people's cars: "Firstly snakes get into garages looking for warmth and they can squeeze into spaces a third of their body width. They need to regulate their body temperature because they are cold-blooded reptiles and so they seek the warmth of a car engine or closed garage space and so we commonly locate them in engines of cars and trucks."

Hudson said that if you ever suspect a snake has gone into your car, you should seal up the car immediately and call a snake catcher. "It pays to be vigilant and avoid parking nearby trees and ensuring your garage door is closed and sealed if your car is packed away at night," he said.