Unfortunately one of the very rare, but possible,
realities of living in this part of the world is the
chance of being bitten by a poisonous snake. Fortunately
very few visitors to Watamu ever experience this, but
the local
 people who work in the orchards, plucking
fruit from mango trees and digg ing in the fields, are
not so fortunate. Most of these people cannot afford the
very high costs of Antivenom, which is the only proven
cure for a venomous snakebite.
James Ashe, a world authority on African snakes and
snakebite, who founded Bio-Ken Snake Farm in 1980,
started a crusade many years ago to help people in
desperate need of Antivenom. He very often gave from his
own Snake Farm emergency antivenom stock, regularly at
no cost to those who could not afford to pay for it.
 James
unfortunately passed away in September 2004 and in
memory of his great, and much needed, work in this area,
a trust was formed to continue this trend. The
James
Ashe Antivenom Trust collects donations from people and
uses these funds primarily to pay for Antivenom which is
brought in to the country and given free of charge to
those who cannot afford it. The Trust also provides Antivenom to others more privileged (and their pets and
livestock) in need of Antivenom at cost price.
Recently the Trust has also undertaken several education
schemes to educate the public on how to avoid
these encounters, correct first aid procedures and up to
date treatment of snakebite.
If you are in need of advice regarding a snakebite,
require antivenom or wish to make a contribution to
the
Trust please contact one of the Trustees on +254 42
32303 or +254 733 290324. The trust is situated at
Bio-Ken Snake Farm.
“Anti-venom is like the Texan’s gun. He doesn’t need it
often, but when he needs it, he needs it real bad.”
James Ashe |
