Toddler Bitten by Cobra Now Recovering
Muhammad Izz Fayyad Sumardi, a two-year-old boy, was fast asleep with his mother on the floor of their home in Ipoh when he was suddenly startled by an uninvited guest: a 0.9-meter-long cobra.
Muhammad screamed when he was bitten by the reptile. Fortunately, his father had just returned from his night shift and was able to attend to his son. The victim's father, Sumardi Chek Had, 39, said that at the time of the incident, around 7:15 a.m. yesterday, he was just about to get some sleep after his shift when he heard his youngest of four children screaming. "He was crying and screaming when my wife saw that his left palm was bleeding and had two snake bite marks. Panicked, I immediately rushed him to Hospital Raja Permaisuri Bainun and contacted the Malaysia Civil Defence Force to catch the snake, which was under the bed," he said when met by reporters at the hospital today. Sumardi, who stayed with his son throughout the night at the hospital, said the pain his son endured was very evident during the first 24 hours, even after receiving treatment, as he would cry every time he woke up. Recounting the anxious moments, Sumardi said that throughout the journey to the hospital, Muhammad cried non-stop, his left hand turned bluish, and his body was weak and limp.
"At the hospital, he would cry whenever he woke up; I knew he was in pain, but thank God, this morning he was able to smile, although his left hand is still swollen up to his elbow. The doctor also informed me that my son's lungs and kidneys are fine," he said.
The condition of the two-year-old boy bitten by a cobra last Monday is improving as he has regained his appetite and is showing signs of wanting to play. His mother, 37-year-old Norhanizawati Bahari, said that after three days in the hospital, Muhammad Izz Fayyad Sumardi is showing positive progress, with only the swelling on his hand still visible.
Meanwhile, Sumardi said that after the incident went viral on social media, several neighbors complained that their homes in Bandar Baru Putra here had also been entered by cobras. Consequently, he has urged the responsible authorities to try and locate the reptile's nest so that no one else becomes a victim.
