Firefighter Rescues Boa Constrictor Named Chocolate Chip From Burning House
(Photo: Johnny Haglund/Getty Images)
Most firefighters will tell you that the people they save from burning buildings tend to hang on to their rescuers with all their strength.
Giant snakes, it turns out, do the same thing.
Michigan firefighter Scott Hemmelsbach discovered that this week when he was asked to enter a burning building in the city of Muskegon. The residents of the home had already escaped, but one inhabitant remained inside: a six-foot, 50-pound boa constrictor named Chocolate Chip.
Hemmelsbach told the Muskegon Chronicle that most of the other firefighters on his squad had already turned down the request to save the snake, but he reluctantly agreed. He donned his breathing apparatus, entered the home, and found Chocolate Chip in a terrarium in the smoke-filled living room.
"It was trying to crawl up the side of his terrarium and get out," said Hemmelsbach. "There was a lot of smoke and he was trapped." Luckily, because Hemmelsbach took wildlife-handling classes in high school, he knew what to do. "I removed the screen off the top and knew to approach it by coming up behind his head. He became very active, and I was glad because that meant that he was OK."
Although Hemmelsbach was initially resistant to saving Chocolate Chip, he said he was compelled to do what was right. "I would do it for any creature. I'm just glad it had a happy ending." The snake was quickly reunited with its two happy owners, who were uninjured and waiting nearby.
Although relatively popular pets, boa constrictors and other large snakes such as Burmese pythons have become dangerous invasive species in Florida and other locations. Specimens of such species that exist in the wild in the U.S. originated as pets but have escaped or were released from captivity. The snakes have had devastating effects on native wildlife, decimating Florida’s small mammals. They are less of a problem in cold states such as Michigan, which does not include them on the state's list of problematic invasive species.
Young boa constrictors can be purchased in Michigan for as little as $60. Many boa populations have become endangered in the wild owing to overexploitation for the pet trade, according to the University of Michigan's Animal Diversity website.