A tourist bitten by a venomous snake while hiking in Albania was helped by her dad, who was thousands of miles away, via WhatsApp after emergency services "hung up" on her.
Amy Lecons, from Australia, was bitten by a European nose-horned viper during a 90-minute trail run on June 21. She had arrived in Valbonë just three days before the incident on the trail. Her experience went viral on social media after she documented it.
Lecons had previously encountered snakes during a visit to Greece and in her native Australia. But her guard dropped and she was bitten by the country's most venomous snake.
Help from a doctor father
"Usually I would take a mini first aid kit, but for whatever reason, I didn't have these on me on this day," she told the Truth Times. "I was...coming down and around a corner when I was bitten by a snake. I instantly knew that I had been bitten by a snake as I felt a sharp pain in my left Achilles."
Lecons recorded a video of the snake to identify it and then attempted to call emergency services. The call reportedly "lasted less than one minute" before she claimed the responder hung up because they did not understand English.
While feeling "helpless," Lecons used WhatsApp to contact her dad Robert Lecons, a doctor in Australia. He told her how to lower her heart rate, shared her exact location on the What3Words app, and contacted local emergency services. He also alerted the owner of Traveler Hostel in Shkodër.
Rescue and recovery
"I didn't realise until weeks later that it was him who was responsible for getting Valbonë Summer Clinic in contact with me as Australian emergency services were also getting through to Interpol around the same time," she added.
Lecons filmed a TikTok as she waited to be rescued and later could be heard shouting for help. An ambulance was sent to her location and arrived about an hour later because she was in a remote location. She reached a hospital in Bajram Curri after another hour.
After spending two days in a hospital, she thanked first responders and nurses for their quick response. Despite being unable to speak the language, she said their care was "the epitome of Albanian hospitality."
Lessons learned
"Upon reflection, I have realised that I should be better prepared with a satellite communication device," Amy said. "In New Zealand, we are taught that this can mean life or death, and I was ignorant to think this wasn't necessary on the trails in Europe as well."
