BALING: A resident of Kampung Keledang, here, was startled to discover a venomous king cobra 'resting' inside a wardrobe.
The discovery was made after the resident heard a hissing sound from the wardrobe, which was located near the kitchen, as she was preparing to cook at 4.30pm.
Worried about her safety, she immediately contacted members of the Baling Malaysian Civil Defence Force (APM) for assistance.
District APM officer Lieutenant (PA) Mohd Faizol Abd Aziz said upon receiving the call regarding the presence of the snake at around 4.40pm, they quickly rushed to the location and arrived approximately 15 minutes later.
He said that a team of five APM members who arrived at the scene then conducted an inspection before finding the king cobra still beneath the clothes rack.
"They had to be cautious in capturing the highly venomous king cobra to prevent it from escaping.
"They successfully captured the king cobra, even though the reptile acted aggressively and attempted to attack them that time," he said when contacted today.
Faizol said the five-metre-long 20-kilogramme snake is being held at the Baling APM office for further action.
He said the current weather changes are causing various species of snakes, especially large and venomous ones, to increasingly seek shelter and food in residential areas.
"For the first six days of January this year, APM Baling has handled 12 cases related to snakes, with six of them involving king cobras."
He said the residents must be cautious and do not attempt to handle snakes themselves due to the risk of endangering their safety if attacked or bitten.
"Instead, they should immediately contact the rescue team at the MERS 999 hotline or the APM Baling call centre at 019-5307091 (24 hours).
"This as APM members are trained in snake handling skills and equipped with special tools for capturing venomous animals, including snakes," he said.
Meanwhile, based on last year's statistics, he said a total of 676 cases related to snakes were recorded, with the highest in December with 79 snakes captured, followed by May with 74, November (70) and July (63).
