Amazon delivery driver in 'serious' condition after rattlesnake attack in Florida

MARTIN COUNTY, Fla. − An eastern diamondback rattlesnake bit an Amazon delivery driver in Florida on Monday, and she remains hospitalized, according to the Martin County Sheriff's Office.

The driver was dropping off a package at a home in the Highlands Reserve Community in Palm City, about 40 miles north of West Palm Beach on Florida's Atlantic coast.

The driver walked to the door and the snake was coiled nearby, sheriff's officials said.

As she placed the package down, the snake struck. The delivery woman immediately became ill and called for help.

She was transported to a hospital, where she is in serious condition.

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Eastern diamondback rattlesnakes are found throughout the southeastern United States including all of Florida, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

The snakes are usually identified by the diamond-shaped pattern along their backs, according to the Smithsonian National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute.

Their bites inject venom with hemotoxins that kill red blood cells and damage tissue, according to the Smithsonian's listing of the snake, but human deaths from bites are rare as antivenoms are widely available.

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It is the largest rattlesnake species and is one of the heaviest known species of venomous snake. 

Mauricio La Plante is a breaking news reporter for TCPalm focusing on Martin County. Follow him on Twitter @mslaplantenews or email him at Mauricio.LaPlante@tcpalm.com.