ALPINE, Calif. (KGTV) — A routine afternoon of yard work turned dangerous for an Alpine woman after she was bitten by a rattlesnake, sending her to the intensive care unit with severe symptoms that surprised medical staff.
On Friday afternoon, Tracey Goodman, 55, was collecting weeds in the front yard of her home off S. Grade Road when she encountered the venomous snake near a retaining wall.
"I was putting weeds in my bucket, and I felt this really sharp bite," Goodman said.
Ring video captured the moment of intense pain following the bite, as she exclaimed, “Ow!” and some colorful language.
Goodman called neighbors for help, who then contacted the Alpine Fire Department and emergency services.
At the hospital, her condition quickly deteriorated with alarming symptoms.
"I noticed my arms and veins turning neon yellow. My mouth and tongue were swollen," Goodman said.
The symptoms became even more severe as time passed.
"My lips twitching, then my eyes and head started twitching. The doctors were shocked. They had never even seen videos of it," Goodman said. "Then all of a sudden, there was a huge wave, my entire body started to spasm, head to toe."
Goodman received two doses of antivenom during her two-day stay in the ICU before being released on Sunday.
Now recovering at home, Goodman is reflecting on the experience and what she could have done differently.
"What I shouldn't have done is go in circles, which can increase venom to your heart faster," Goodman said.
She's also planning to take more precautions during future yard work.
"Wear the leather gloves all the time. Take a stick and look around first," Goodman said.
The snake that bit Goodman, believed to be a juvenile Southern Pacific rattlesnake, was never found.
Local snake wranglers report that rattlesnake sightings increased in March and will continue through the hotter months, into September and October.
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