Copperhead Snake Attacks Woman In LongHorn Steakhouse

A woman was rushed to the hospital after a copperhead snake attacked her at LongHorn Steakhouse in Virginia.

Rachel Myrick was barely through the restaurant's entrance when she felt a sharp pain in her foot, similar to a bee sting. Then, she realized there was an 8-inch-long snake attached to her foot, so she shook it loose. The slithering reptile bit her twice on her toes and once on the side of her foot. 

"I freaked out," Myrick told Fredricksburg.com, recalling that she yelled, "I got bit! I got bit!"

Her boyfriend and son then stomped on the snake to kill it. Myrick left in an ambulance and was admitted to a local hospital where staff monitored the swelling of her foot. After it extended past her knee, health officials administered antivenin — a process that took over an hour — in addition to morphine and Benadryl. Apparently, the rest of the dinner party stayed behind for dinner, which the restaurant manager comped.

After five days in the hospital, Myrick was released on crutches.  But, she says it will take at least three months to fully recover. "It's painful just to ride in the car. There's very little that I can do. I can't work. I can't take my kids anywhere. Even phone calls are very difficult because I'm medicated. I can chat, but I can't negotiate a contact on someone's behalf," Myrick, who works in real estate, told Fredricksburg.com. "They say that your life can change in a moment, and they're absolutely correct."

A spokesperson for LongHorn Steakhouse told The Washington Post that the incident was "highly unusual" and that the restaurant is working with its facilities team to determine how the snake got into the restaurant, adding that they were "taking steps to prevent it from happening again."

The Daily Meal has reached out to LongHorn Steakhouse for comment but has yet to receive a response. Do snakes put you in the mood for steaks? LongHorn didn't quite make the cut — sorry, mate — but here are America's best inexpensive steakhouses.