A rattlesnake has bitten another hiker in Southern California, sending them to the hospital after being carried off the trail by firefighters over the weekend, according to Santa Barbara County officials.
On Sunday around 3:38 p.m., the Montecito Fire Protection District responded to the Buena Vista Trail to an injured hiker, according to an agency social media post. The female hiker was about three quarters of a mile up the trail when she was bitten on the ankle.
She didn’t have call service to call 911 but sent a text to someone she knew, who contacted emergency services, according to the post.
The hiker made her way down the trail and was told by dispatchers to blow her whistle so first responders could find her, the agency said.
Montecito firefighters and Santa Barbara County Search and Rescue found the hiker and transported her to the trailhead, according to the post. She was then taken to a hospital.
The incident marks the second emergency on a Montecito hiking trail in recent weeks, according to authorities.
Last month, a Ventura County woman died from a rattlesnake bite on a Southern California hiking trail during an unusually active period of snake attacks and unseasonably warm weather.
Rattlesnakes, which are typically most active in spring and summer, appear to have been drawn out earlier than usual this year as the Southland experienced the hottest March on record.
Officials have recommended people stay vigilant and have an emergency plan in case of a snake bite, including knowing their location, trail names and GPS coordinates.
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