“This Wasn’t My Victory”: EMS Practitioner Gives Follow-Up on Recent Pretoria Black Mamba Bite Case

• Pretoria EMS practitioner Xander Loubser shared a detailed follow-up on the black mamba bite case that shook South Africa on 25 March 2026
• He confirmed that the patient is doing well after being intubated on the scene and receiving 15 vials of antivenom
• Medical professionals and members of the public flooded the comments section, praising the team's quick thinking

Briefly News recently reported on a terrifying incident at Jan Niemand Park in Pretoria on 25 March 2026, where an adult male was bitten on the arm by a black mamba. The gentleman had to be intubated on the scene by emergency responders. The update that followed two days later brought the relief many people had been waiting for.

Xander Loubser, an Advanced Life Support practitioner from Pretoria, posted a thoughtful and detailed reflection on 27 March 2026, explaining every decision his team made that day. He shared that from the moment his team arrived, the patient was already showing clear signs of serious envenomation, with progressive deterioration that left no time to wait and see. The decision to apply a tourniquet above the bite site was made by a PVES first aider on the scene who had no pressure bandages available. He consulted with the team before acting, which Loubser said deserves real recognition given the pressure of the moment.

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He acknowledged the debate that followed online about the tourniquet and noted that the South African Snakebite Management Consensus Guideline specifically references its use in confirmed black mamba and Cape cobra bites. This is especially true when transport times are long. The antivenom was administered, and the tourniquet was released in a controlled way at the hospital. The decision to intubate early was also deliberate, done not because the patient had already collapsed but because the team knew exactly where his condition was heading.

Road transport to Netcare Unitas, just 12 minutes away, was chosen over a helicopter because calling for air support would have caused unnecessary delays when care was already available and close. The receiving hospital had antivenom ready and was prepared to escalate further if needed. Loubser ended his post with the news that he had received a photo of the patient sitting up, smiling and breathing on his own. He ended by saying that the outcome was not his victory alone. It was a team effort and an act of grace.

View the Facebook post here.

Netizens praise the EMS in the follow-up

People who had followed the original story came back to respond in the comments section on Facebook user @xander.loubser's post:

@Missy Puggy said:

"A first responder needs to make decisions in seconds. There is no luxury of time. It is easy to say this and that afterwards. I salute you."

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@Nicolette Mandelstam added:

"Always interesting how absolute specialists are questioned by people with an opinion, not facts, not experience, not training."

@Daniel Kuipers wrote:

"Absolutely amazing work by everyone involved. All the right decisions were made. No cowboys. No heroics."

@Mike Perry shared:

"We have used a blood pressure cuff successfully on a black mamba bite and a Cape cobra bite. In both cases, the patient was discharged well."

@Steve Daly added:

"A few years ago, I heard a horse stepped on a black mamba as it came out of the stables. The horse died in less than five minutes."

@Natasia Turner wrote:

"My takeaway from this: tourniquet for snakebite is generally bad, but there are people more qualified to call and ask for advice when the need arises."

More on SA snake bite stories

• Briefly News recently reported on a snake handler who was called to a KZN home after a resident heard movement in the ceiling.
• A heartbroken woman shared the devastating loss of her brother to a bite, and the grief poured in by South Africans showed just how deeply the tragedy touched people.
• An elderly and experienced snake catcher ended up in the ICU after being bitten by a snake in Pretoria.

Source: Briefly News