As time went on, I read about Bill now and then, such as when he was bitten by the Gaboon viper in the 1970s, and a few other dangerous ones. I was about 9 yrs old, and always remembered the story vividly. In April 2010, a 25-year-old woman from New Jersey was killed by a . IE 11 is not . I visited the Serpentarium in the late 70s on a trip down to Key West. Authorities found the remains of the . When our son was very small, he was afraid of snakes. I first heard of Bill Haast around 1955, when reading a "man's magazine" (as they were called back then, probably Argosy. How lucky were we that we had this place? One day I noticed his handshis fingersthey were deformend, mangled, sort of like a something from an old horror moviea result--one of many, of having been bitten by so many venomous snakesI think his own blood was an anti-venom, as a result of being bitten so much, I think he used to distribute this "antivenom (his blood)worldwide to snakebite vicims. In October, a man fought a crocodile with a knife while it held his friend's head in its jaws. THIS SOFT SPOKEN WOMAN TURNED TO HER FAMILY AND SAID "I'VE COME ALL THE WAY TO MIAMI TO HAVE SOME SNAKE S__T ON ME". When I was a little girl, we lived in Kendall. To this day it is one of our most treasured possesions. I am wondering if that was the same pit the young boy had fallen into. World Crocodile attack Indonesia Crocodiles Alligator. The parents diligently tried to get the child, Sheriff Demings said. I've outlived all my friends down there.'' Haast physically extracted venom from venomous snakes by holding them by the head and forcing them to bite a rubber membrane covering a vial. There was a "movie night" outside on the beach tonight Saying the alligator might have attacked the baby on the beach. They all screamed, then everyone had a good laughed together! Its been one tough week in Orlando.. Like for so many others, the Serpentarium was a place of wonder for me in my youth. I was a child in Florida in the 60's and I saw many, many of Dr. Hasst's shows and remember being concerned the snakes might get away and come towards me of course they never did.. In the 1970s, along with his friend, respected Miami physician Ben Sheppard, Haast distributed PROven, a venom-based serum. In 1990 he moved to Punta Gorda, Florida, with his snakes, where he established the Miami Serpentarium Laboratories. My "fondest" memory: sitting on the side of the crock pit with my butt hanging over the edge, the wall wasn't but a couple feet tall, right? His contribution to antivenin science is unparalleled and earned him recognition throughout his life. A crocodile mauled and killed an 8-year-old boy near his home in Malaysia. EARLY START The story of how Haast made his way to Florida has a certain Huck Finn appeal. In 1982 when I was twelve I moved from England to Hollywood, Fl with my family. Television, a book, big crowds, all helped to build up Haast's image and popularity. I live in Sarasota now and totally enjoy the water, I think those times are responceable. 2, my first Indigo. The guy that answered the phone was very calm, and told me to just leave it alone and that it would probably just be on it's way. He started extracting venom from his snakes when he was 15 years old, and dropped out of school when he was 16 years old. "He'd put on a show just to supplement the research for the while," she said. Their daughters, Nya and Shantee probably do not even remeber me (it was in the early seventies). My scary moment at the Serpentarium was to see the salt water crock in a deep pit jump up and snap a chicken before it hit the ground! On November 3, a man was dragged underwater by a crocodile while swimming in the Kali River, in India's Uttara Kannada district, Newsroom Odisha reported. Glad to see many others share great memories of the Serpentarium. Bill Haast, the crocodile's owner, was not talking to reporters. Don Julio told the Mail Online: "The hardest thing for my wife was seeing the crocodile float with my son's body.". By the mid-1960s he was putting on five shows a day, dressed in a white lab coat, extracting venom to sell for scientific experimentation. We watched the show (I don't remember if the presenter was Mr. Haast), and afterwards, Scot was encouraged to touch several snakes. He has written a book called 'The World of Snakes. ' it stirred interest faster than the key lime pie and local jelly signs. Also wonder if that huge Cobra statue is still on the property..and still scary as hell!!!!!!!!! I graduated from there in 1979. And I still do as if it happened yesterday. For years, Haast tried to prove that venom could treat multiple sclerosis, lupus, arthritis and Parkinson's disease. I took care of Clarita Haast's original Continental Mark. We considered him the Patron Saint of Junkies in those days. Dr. Haast met my pediatrician at Baptist Hospital in Miami. Most people working in the biological field take some pride in having a species or subspecies named for them, but Haast seemed to have none of that. During the 1950s, he was bitten by cobras about twenty times. Great memories. Rescuers were able to recover his body from the water in December 2020, but he was pronounced dead at the scene. We donated it to the serpentarium. Except for the grey hair and receding hairline I would have said 'hasn't changed a bit". As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. Boy, 8, killed by crocodile while swimming in front of devastated dad I grew up in North Miami Beach and remember going to the Serpentarium many times, but my favorites were Sundays when the King Cobra came out. Haast eventually sold his family home to buy the land on South Dixie Highway where the Serpentarium would rise. Haast is still trying to prove a point: He'll go to his grave believing venom can heal. HaastHe paid 0.25 for poisonus and 0.15 for no poisonessHe was a great man and saved thousands of lives with his snake anti-venomBitten numerous time and the only man to sruvive the bite of a Mamba, he insisted on being awake, so he could descirbe the symtoms of the snake bite,He descibed the bite as haluciations and dream world full of vibrant colors. I never forgot Mr. Haast and his snakes, and, to this day, I am not scared of snakes or any other animals. Sometime later when I visited again, I bought Cobras In His Garden, and Dr. Haast, recovering from that or another bite on his hand, left a blood smudge on my book while signing it . The boy's father was helpless to save his son from the creature. I remember it sliding around my leg and shaking my leg till it feel off. TimesMachine is an exclusive benefit for home delivery and digital subscribers. Authorities contacted the boys family to express their condolences, Sheriff Demings said, adding there is no question we will lose a two-year-old child. With his certification, he moved to Miami to work for Pan American World Airways. ``I feel like a man in his 60s.'' His powerful blood also rescued 21 snake-bite victims. The man who mesmerized generations of paying customers from 1947 to 1984 by extracting venom at his Miami Serpentarium as a spine-tingling South Florida attraction is dead. I couldn't take the anti-venom so Dr. Haast instructed the hospital on how to treat me. They had the best house! I think that this Dr., was loved by thousands of Miamians, because of him lives are save. Boy, 8, mauled to death by crocodile in front of horrified parents after being dragged underwater as he played. The concrete & stucco cobra was the second icon of the Serpentarium. I wish you could have seen that crowd move as that snake reared itself and advanced toward Bill as it poured itself onto the concrete floor. Haast eventually returned home, married and enrolled in airplane-mechanic school, but Florida called. Supposedly, this Timacuan sub-species and the nearby Mexican Bush Master are the largest poisonous snakes in the world and Bill Hass had both of them in his World famous Serpentarium. I sure do remember Mr. Haast as I bought the 1969 GT500 Shelby that he once owned. Drivers passing the former site of. The 2-year-old boy grabbed by alligator at Disney hotel has been found dead, a source says https://t.co/SyWdOq9L87 https://t.co/xLMVr0orfE. However, the venom eventually did affect him, and he was taken to a hospital where it took him several days to recover. While he was extracting venom from a small cobra, he was struck on the thumb and calmly told his wife that he was going to lie down for awhile. Tragically, a 6-year-old boy fell in and died in 1977. . As a result of the damage, Haast gave up handling venomous snakes, and no longer kept any at his facility. With 43 types of antivenin, a diverse enough supply to treat 90 percent of all bites, the unit's antivenin bank supplies the U.S. military and hospitals around the nation -- sometimes the world. It was an experiment, but having received his first venomous snake bite as a teenager, Haast was used to risks. It is unclear whether the attack was fatal. Haast caught his first snake at 7; his first serious bite was at 12. Mr Haast came out at my parents request after thrilling us with a great show. Cookie broke free and took the boy underwater. I also remember Mrs. Haast coming to the schools, all the way into my sophomore year at Gables High, to talk about their work - and the high point of her talks was when she would take an indigo snake out of her purse and invite everyone to feel it. The incident comes after a four-year-old boy fell into the gorilla enclosure at Cincinnati Zoo last month. In his case, he claims the venom has helped him live a long and healthy life -- with the exception of his snakebitten hands. I have returned to see his show at thye Serpentarium and have watched him with his wife on the Merv Griffith show & others ( I think also the Jonny Carson Show) many years later. Children shrieked in horrified glee. The man who mesmerized generations of paying customers from 1947 to 1984 by extracting venom at his Miami Serpentarium as a spine-tingling South Florida attraction is dead. Icon: Bill Haast. Four years ago, I got bit by a Malaysian pit viper, and that was the end of my right . We got a motel room across the road from the Serpentarium. Haast started collecting snakes and, after initial opposition from his mother, was allowed to keep them at home. His wife Ann did not approve, and they eventually divorced. I always told people I'd live past 100, and I still feel I will. Sheriff Demings said a recovery operation was under way to find the childs body in the lagoon and bring some closure to this family. After a 15-hour search, the attack was certainly not survivable at this point, Sheriff Demings said. On one trip, Dr. Haast was there, but not in his office or outside on the lawn as usual. Everyone sold them to the Serpentarium for $1.25/Ft, good money in those days.