Woman Bitten By Rattlesnake At Sarasota County Park Has Long Recovery

NORTH PORT, FL — A North Port woman is recovering after being bitten by an eastern diamond rattlesnake at a Sarasota County park last month.

On May 19, just days before her 21st birthday, Seirra Lynn was hiking in Myakkahatchee Creek Environmental Park when she was bit by the dangerous snake.

"My beautiful little sister ... unexpectedly found that one of the things that she loved to do, that brought her great peace and joy would drastically change her life forever," her sister, Brittany Pedersen, wrote in the description of a GoFundMe fundraiser for Lynn's medical care. "Seirra was bitten by one of Florida's most venomous snakes, while she was at Myakkahatchee Creek Park taking pictures of nature and the beauty behind it."

As of Monday afternoon, nearly $19,000 of the $50,000 goal has been raised.

Her sister was airlifted from the park to Sarasota Memorial Hospital in critical condition, Pedersen wrote.

Doctors administered 58 vials of anti-venom when treating Lynn. That's the most they've ever given a snake bite victim, they told the family, according to Fox 13.

"Seirra is one of the strongest people I know; she’s loving and so caring," her older sister wrote. "Having to see her go through this is not only devastating but beyond heartbreaking."

She was moved out of the intensive care unit on May 28, but she remains hospitalized, WWSB reported. She was moved to the trauma floor because of an unstable heart rate.

She'll require reconstructive surgeries in the coming weeks and will then need rehabilitation while she learns how to walk again, reports said.

Her boyfriend, Derrick Hunter, said he and Lynn's family were worried she wouldn't survive the rattlesnake bite.

“We didn’t think she was going to be back around on Saturday, the day after, but she’s a warrior and she fought through and absolute miracles happen,” he told NBC 2.