“Keep the Lungs Going”: Black Mamba Bite in Pretoria Sends Man to Hospital and Has SA Shaken

• An adult male was bitten on the arm by a black mamba in Jan Niemand Park in Pretoria
• Responders intubated him and placed him on a ventilator on the scene before rushing him to the hospital
• South Africans flooded the comments asking whether the man survived the deadly ordeal

A scary emergency happened in Jan Niemand Park in Pretoria at around 12:30 on 25 March 2026. An adult male was bitten on the arm by a black mamba. Pretoria Volunteer Emergency Services shared the incident on their Facebook page. They explained that PVES responders, a PVES practitioner and a PVES doctor all rushed to the scene after the call came in. When they arrived, the man was conscious but in serious distress. He was struggling to breathe inside his vehicle.

Emergency crews applied a tourniquet above the bite site to slow the spread of the venom, then carefully removed him from the vehicle. As his condition worsened, he was then urgently taken to a nearby medical facility. An update later confirmed that 15 vials of antivenom had been administered. He had been taken off the ventilator and was breathing on his own, and a full recovery was expected.

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According to an expert from the Kruger National Park, a black mamba bite works fast. The first signs are a metallic taste in the mouth and pins and needles in the fingers and lips, which get worse quickly as the venom attacks the nervous system. Staying calm and moving slowly is important because a higher heart rate speeds up how fast the venom spreads through the body.

View the Facebook post here.

Netizens get spooked by black mamba incident

People were shaken by the incident and had a lot to say on the Facebook user @Pretoria Volunteer Emergency Services' post:

@Du Plooy Nico wrote:

"The secret of mamba bites — keep the lungs going to ensure no lack of oxygen to the brain."

@Karen Williams said:

"I think I know the gentleman. He once assisted in catching a Mozambican spitting cobra at my house. Will keep him in my prayers."

@Nandie Begrie Terblanche shared:

"My husband survived a black mamba bite years ago and almost lost a finger. He was in a coma for eight days."

@Vanessa Bristow added:

"For a neurotoxic snakebite, it is usually recommended to wrap a crepe bandage firmly around the affected limb rather than a tourniquet, which stops blood flow."

@Carina Fourie asked:

"Did they have enough antivenom? Apparently, they sometimes struggle with shortages."

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@Leonie Glover wrote:

"Thank you to all the emergency personnel. What would we do without you."

@Maria Visser said:

"Well, let's call him lucky from now."

@Jennifer Holzapfel added:

"Wishing the man a speedy recovery. I hope he got to the hospital and was treated on time."

More on scary SA encounters

• Briefly News recently reported on a man watching TV at home when something appeared beside him on the couch.
• A black mamba was spotted inside a Limpopo pit toilet, and the reactions from people made it very clear why that particular location made the sighting so much more terrifying.
• A heartbroken woman shared the story of losing her brother to a snake bite, and the outpouring of grief and condolences showed how deeply the story affected people.

Source: Briefly News