Volusia County councilman bitten by snake

VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. (WOFL FOX 35) - Volusia County Councilman Pat Patterson said he was simply stepping out of his home on a Sunday night, but he didn’t realize what was sitting in his path: a small snake -- he thinks a pigmy rattlesnake -- sat coiled-up on his deck.

Patterson said he must have stepped on it just enough to get it angry.

"I guess I aggravated him a little bit,” said Patterson.

The snake struck his ankle twice. Patterson said, at first, he thought it was just a bug bite, until he looked down and saw the gray scales slither away. Patterson said he tried to find the snake to get as much information about it as he could for doctors, but eventually just had to give up and go to the ER.

Patterson said doctors monitored his ankle and leg for close to seven hours, before determining the bite was a dry bite, meaning no venom broke through the skin.

The councilman said, after a lifetime in Florida, this is his first snake bite.  He hopes it's his last.