8-year-old bitten by venomous snake at Georgia lake

VILLA RICA, Ga. - Eight-year-old Southerlyn Fisher was playing with her brother at Lamar Moody Lake in Villa Rica on Monday when she felt an excruciating pain. It turned out to be a venomous snakebite.

"I never thought that this was ever going to happen to me," Southerlyn said.

Her brother carried her back to their house, where their mother, Wendy Fisher, saw marks from fang bites and quickly took her to the hospital.

"I was scared it was going to end bad," Wendy Fisher, who is a 911 dispatcher, said.

Doctors at Tanner Medical Center treated Southerlyn with anti-venom for the bite from a copperhead snake. While her mother said she was scared her daughter would not make it, she is now expected to be OK.

Copperheads are pretty common in Georgia, said Daniel Sollenberger, a senior wildlife biologist with the Georgia Department of Natural Resources.

"They like places that have a lot of leaf litter or other on the ground," he said.

Sollenberger advises people to go to the emergency room immediately if they think a snake has bitten them. The only effective treatment is anti-venom from the hospital.

As school lets out and more children head outside, it is important to be cautious and aware of the potential danger of venomous snakes.