Overview
- Rescuers located the Montecito hiker after Sunday’s whistle-aided search that began when she texted a loved one due to poor cell service, and they took her to a hospital with no condition released.
- California’s poison control system received 77 snakebite calls in the first three months of 2026, a pace that could exceed the state’s usual 200 to 300 calls for an entire year.
- Two people in California have died from venomous snakebites this spring, an uncommon toll in a state that typically sees zero or one such death in a year.
- Biologist Emily Taylor says an early heat wave and fast-moving spring growth brought snakes out sooner to hunt, not a change in snake aggression or venom.
- Authorities urge hikers to stay on marked trails, watch where they place hands and feet, keep dogs leashed, call 911 if bitten, and avoid tourniquets, ice, or attempts to suck out venom.