A candidate for West Virginia secretary of state was bitten by venomous snakes while removing his campaign signs after losing his race.
The candidate, Doug Skaff, came in second place in his primary.
While removing his signs in Danville, Skaff was bitten in the leg twice by two copperheads.
“I just felt like something sharp, and then I grabbed my sign, and it knocked me back. It may take a couple of days till they get all this venom out to relieve the pressure on my muscles. Left leg from knees down completely swollen can’t touch it,” Skaff told West Virginia's Metro News.
The first bite was on the pinky toe of his right foot, and the second was on the calf of his left leg.
“I get bit right there on my leg and it shocks me,” Skaff told the outlet. “I look down and there are two copperhead snakes. There was a baby snake and a bigger snake. I may have stepped on a nest or something.”
Skaff said that he remains in "a lot of pain with persistent swelling."
“It hurts more than I’ve had anything hurt me in my life,” Skaff said.
On Wednesday, his foot was still "tingling," but he told the Metro that the pain was moving up his leg.
“It’s more like a throbbing thing. We’re going to do another round of his venom reversal medicine. I’m going to go down to ICU and do it again,” Skaff said.
According to the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources, copperhead snakes are one of just two venomous species in the state.
"Although the majority of venomous snake bites in West Virginia are from copperheads, no fatalities from copperheads have been recorded in over 30 years," the WVDNR says. "From 1969 to 1992 only four people in the Mountain State have died from rattlesnake bites while in the wild. Bee stings, cows and horses caused 15 times as many deaths as snakes. Up to one-half of venomous snake bites result in no venom being injected. If, however, you are bitten by a venomous snake, see a doctor or go to a hospital immediately."
