A YOUNG girl was left fighting for her life after she was bitten by an adder during a day out with her family at a UK nature reserve. Lil, 11, was attacked by a venomous snake while on the children's adder trail at Fringringhoe Wick Nature Reserve on Sunday. The reptile lashed out at her hand after she crouched down to get a closer look.
Lil's mother, Sam Lythgho, 41, became instantly concerned and rushed her daughter to Colchester General Hospital . However, Lil's chest had already swollen by the time they got there and she was violently sick in A&E until doctors managed to find the anti-venom. Sam told the Mirror: "Within 20 minutes her organs were shutting down and you could see the venom tracking up her arm.
" There were no signs indicating how dangerous the reptiles were on the adder trail, according to the mum. The family were looking for pictures of the UK's only venomous snakes in the hopes of winning a prize. Instead, Lil's organs began failing and doctors struggled to find a pulse at one point.
Luckily, she was given anti-venom and 20 minutes later she let her mother know that she was feeling better. Lil, who wants to be a vet when she gets older, recovered and was released from the hospital a couple of days later. Sam now wants to raise awareness of the dangers of snake bites to stop others from going through the trauma.
She said: "If I had taken her home I don’t know if she would be here now." Colchester General Hospital only had one anti-venom available and is n.
