Below is a list of fatal snakebites that occurred in Australia. Omitted incidents include cases where someone died from falling after receiving a bite. Some of the comments include the first aid or treatment that was attempted. For the older fatalities, the term ligature meant wrapping a limb or finger with a string to act like a tourniquet, and the term scarify meant cutting the skin so blood flows out of the body, presumably to flush venom. Current practice advises not washing the affected body part so that medical personnel can sample venom residue on the skin to determine which type of snake was involved.
Although Australian snakes can be very venomous, comparatively little is known about the protein compositions of venoms from Australian snakes, compared to those of Asia and America. Wide access to antivenom and adequate medical care has made deaths exceedingly rare with only a few fatalities each year. Australian snakes possess potent venom; 10 of the world's top 10 most venomous snakes live in Australia.
The estimated incidence of snakebites annually in Australia is between 3 and 18 per 100,000 with an average mortality rate of 0.03 per 100,000 per year, or roughly 1 to 2 persons, down from 13 persons per year in the 1920s. Between 1979 and 1998 there were 53 deaths from snakes, according to data obtained from the Australian Bureau of Statistics.Fatalities from Venomous Animals Australian Venom Research Unit Between 1942 and 1950 there were 56 deaths from snakebite recorded in Australia. Of 28 deaths in the 1945-1949 period, 18 occurred in Queensland, 6 in New South Wales, 3 in Western Australia and 1 in Tasmania. Globally, 1.8–2.7 million people are envenomed annually, with more than 125,000 people dying, and for every fatality there are another 3 to 4 people permanently disabled. In 2017, the World Health Organization added snakebite envenoming to their list of Neglected tropical diseases, requesting the cooperation of antivenom agencies worldwide.
A Queensland Government occupational health publication says that "Snakes are not usually aggressive and do not seek confrontation with humans but may retaliate if provoked. The important thing to remember is to never attempt to catch or kill a snake – most snake bites occur when people are trying to do this."
19th century Date Species Name, age Location; Comments1 May 1867Tiger snakeWilliam Drummond, 40, police magistrateMelbourne, Victoria; A showman named Shires performed an act in which he allowed himself to be bitten by a deadly tiger snake. Drummond, convinced that Shires was a fraud, demanded to be bitten by the snake himself. Shires complied – and Drummond passed away. Shires was acquitted of manslaughter on the grounds that he had been denied the opportunity to treat Drummond using a home-made antivenom.5 November 1875Tiger snake Margaret Falconer, 54Swan Hill, Victoria; asked by her husband John Falconer to watch a 6ft long tiger snake while he got a stick, Margaret saw the snake retreating into a hole and grabbed it by the tail. She was bitten on the ankle; six puncture wounds were found. She was treated by injecting ammonia and having a galvanic battery applied to the area, but died 50 hours after being bitten.7 December 1878Tiger snakeHugh McFadden, 12yo boyAlexandra, Victoria; while planting potatoes in a paddock, where his father was also ploughing, he reached into a bag of potatoes that had been sitting on the ground since that morning and was bitten on the hand by a 3ft tiger snake. The snake was killed; first aid was ligature and scarifying, and later a doctor injected him with ammonia. He died 20 hours after being bitten.October 1884unknownHenry Marsh, 6yo boyColeraine, New South Wales; the son of William Marsh of Moree was bitten when walking home from school. Taken to Dr. Hayman but died later the same day.25 February 1887Red-bellied black snakeAh Goon, 56Wangaratta, Victoria; a Chinese market gardener was bitten on the heel. The snake was killed and the head was rubbed on the wound (a Chinese antidote), and the man was removed to Wangaratta Hospital where he died the next day.25 April 1893Tiger snakeCharles Mason, 10yo boyStawell, Victoria, stepped on a tiger snake on a bush track at about 9am, and the snake doubled up and bit him on the leg. He was taken home, where a ligature was applied by the boy's mother, the wound scarified, and whisky and other stimulants administered. The boy was then taken to Stawell Hospital where he died 8 hours after being bitten by the snake.May 1893Tiger snakeVictor HullarVictoria, was bitten on the hand during a snake demonstration. First aid: Brandy with some unnamed antidote, and washing the wound. Later a ligature was applied, the victim was injected with strychnine, and he was sent to the hospital where he passed out.February 1895Tiger snakeArmit, 8yo boyInverary, New South Wales, near Bungonia, bitten on the ankle while crossing a paddock barefooted. First aid: ligature and scarified. Later, strychnine.January 1896Unknown Miss Kelly, 8yo girlVictoria, bitten on the finger, arm, and throat while asleep on a porch. The snake was killed, the wound scarified and sucked, but the child died on the way to the hospital.September 1898Tiger snake Chapman, 15yo boy Urana, New South Wales; bitten while bird catching. A friend took them to hospital but arrived four hours after the bite & perished.January 1899Tiger snake Dudley, 13yo femaleBruthen, Victoria; trod on snake while carrying parcel.January 1899Mainland tiger snake Gordon, 9yo boyCongbool station, Balmoral, Victoria, bitten twice on the thumb while removing some rails to get a rabbit.March 1899Tiger snakePat O'Rourke, 74yo maleKilmore, Victoria, bitten on little finger when he went to the barn for some hay. The wound was bound, scarified and sucked. He sought medical treatment and was later sent home where he fell into laziness, but died.
20th century 1900s Date Species Name, age Location; CommentsNovember 190013yo girlBendigo, VictoriaSeptember 1901Tiger snakeReginald Heeps, 10yo boyTallangatta Victoria bitten on the finger while catching rabbits, The wound was scarified, treated by a doctor who administered strychnine and brandy. Died one day laterDecember 1901Common death adder"a little lad"Wisemans Ferry, New South Wales; bitten on the foot, died before the doctor arrivedOctober 1902Tiger snake15yo boyCoonong, New South Wales; bitten on the calf while bird-catching, died four hours laterNovember 1906small boyYea, Victoria1907Frances McKnightMiddle Harbour, New South Wales; snake bit her three times on ankle while McKnight was gathering wild-flowers1908Walter HardenMaroubra, New South Wales1908Ronald WhitechurchSeymour, Victoria1909Hugh McDayDeloraine, Tasmania
1910s Date Species Name, age Location; Comments1910Brown snakeHoward ThomasQueenslandMarch 191014yo maleCasterton, Victoria; was rabbiting with friends, bitten when put hand in a burrow to get a rabbit1913Eastern brown snakeGarnett SeeLa Perouse, New South Wales, snake show.15 December 1913Tiger snakeHarry Deline, 35Melbourne, snake show. Deline exported snakes to Texas, where his father had a snake farm. On December 12, he attended hospital for a festered finger resulting from a snakebite a month earlier, when he showed some people a snake at Colac and it bit him on the finger. Three days later on December 15, Deline was undertaking a snake show at Luna Park with an assistant known as Sleeping Beauty. She would lie on a stretcher while he covered her with fifty snakes, and at the end, added a tiger snake on top. On this night the tiger snake began to hiss vehemently, and before he could safely secure it, it wrapped itself around his arm and lunged to bite his neck, close to the jugular vein. He collapsed and was taken to hospital by car, but died the next day.1914Tiger snakeAlex RolfeNo further details.November 191521yo maleLaverton, Victoria1917Vogel boyTintaldra, Victoria1917Tiger snakeGeorge VowellsSydney, Antidote vendor.
1920s Date Species Name, age Location; Comments27 February 1920UnknownThomas BoxerColeraine, Bitten on the hand while trying to catch a rabbit in a burrow on Kurtuk estate. Taken to the homestead then by car to a doctor. Died the following day.13 March 1920Tiger snakeTeresa Caton, 26yo femaleSydney, a carnival girl was bitten while 'playing' with some snakes belonging to snake showman Thomas Wanless. The wound was scarified, a ligature applied, and Wanless' antidote administered. The victim refused further treatment until 12 hours after the bite, which was too late. Wanless died the following year in South Africa from a Green mamba bite.3 December 1920Tiger snakeRalph Shegog, 9yo maleGundowring, Victoria, Bitten at his fathers dairy farm and died one day later.13 December 1920UnknownColleera Telford, 3yo femaleApollo Bay, Victoria; Bitten while at her parents' dairy farm. Puncture marks found on leg after death.December 1925Tiger snakeCharles McPhersonMolesworth, Tasmania; bitten while sitting on a tarpaulin, reading, on a camping trip. The wound was incised and cleansed and a ligature applied. He died in hospital 12 hours after being bitten.July 1926Brown snakeMaud Frances Byden, 29yo femaleQueensland, the woman was trying to bag a 4 ft long brown snake and it bit her above the knee.October 1927Tiger snakeErnest Pollack, middle-aged maleFitzroy, Victoria, having collected and bagged several specimens earlier in the day, he was found at home having been bitten.1928Tiger snakeDot VanePerth, snake show, wife of Rocky Vane.May 1928Tiger snakeC.J. FrenchAdelaide, bitten on the forearm while giving a demonstration to children at the Adelaide Zoo where he was the curator of the snake park which was opened just two months earlier. Ligature, cut and sucked wound, applied permanganate crystals. He later died at hospital.February 1929Tiger snakeHarry Melrose, 42yo malePerth, William Henry Melrose, a partner of Rocky Vane's, was showing off with a bag of snakes he was bitten on the hand. He was taken to hospital where the wound was scarified and other remedies applied. He died two days after being bitten.
1930s