Cincinnati Zoo Employee Hospitalized After Getting Bitten by Venomous Eastern Diamondback Rattlesnake
The female staffer was transported to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center in stable condition on Thursday afternoon
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A photograph of an Eastern Diamondback RattlesnakeA female employee at the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden was taken to the hospital after she was bitten by an eastern diamondback rattlesnake on Thursday, authorities said.
Emergency responders arrived at the reptile house at the zoo just before 4 p.m. to find the woman had suffered a partial bite in a “behind-the-scenes area” of the zoo, officials explained in a statement obtained by the Cincinnati Enquirer, NBC affiliate WLWT-TV and ABC affiliate WCPO-TV.
The victim was transferred to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center in stable condition, according to the zoo.
The zoo said in its statement that the staffer did not require antivenom medication for the bite. The reptile is the largest venomous snake found in North America, according to the zoo’s website.
Related: Fla. Amazon Driver in 'Very Serious Condition' After Rattlesnake Bite During Home Delivery
A representative with the zoo did not immediately respond to PEOPLE's request for additional comment.
Known for its iconic rattle, the snake produces a venom called hemotoxin, which kills red blood cells and can cause tissue damage, according to the Smithsonian National Zoo & Conservation Biology Institute.
Deaths from rattlesnake bites are rare, however, due to the availability of antivenom, per the Smithsonian.
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Last month in Florida, an Amazon driver was seriously injured after an eastern diamondback rattlesnake bit her while she was delivering a package.
The driver was dropping a shipment off at a Palm City home when she was attacked by the snake, the Martin County Sheriff's Office said in a statement.
Related: Utica Zoo Temporarily Closes After an African Lion Injures a Zookeeper
The "highly venomous" snake "was coiled up near the front door" when the driver went to put the package down. It then bit her on "the back of her leg, just above the knee."
The woman "immediately became ill and called 911” for help, the sheriff's office said.
One day later, a spokesperson for the sheriff's office confirmed to ABC News that the victim was in stable condition.
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