Polk firefighters encounter rattlesnake while working brush fire

BARTOW, Fla. (WOFL FOX 35) - Some Polk County Fire Rescue and Florida Forest Service firefighters were extinguishing a brush fire just before 3 p.m. on Wednesday when they had an encounter with a deadly sanke. 

The firefighters were battling a blaze in the Indian Lake Estates area Wednesday afternoon, when a rattlesnake slithered by them.

“This shows some of the other dangers our firefighters face,” said Battalion Chief Chris Hancock. “We always have to stay alert.”

Luckily, the firefighters were able to avoid the snake.  

"I’m thankful the wind was blowing in the opposite direction of a nearby home,” Chief Hancock added.  

The two acre brush fire was in a wooded area off Azalea Drive. The Florida Forest Service used a tractor to create a fire line to contain the fire, and by 4 p.m., the fire was extinguished.