Snake shocks Sydney shoppers by slithering along supermarket shelf; video goes viral

Representational image: News18

For most people, going to the supermarket is just a mundane task, where you are more concerned with finding the type of milk you prefer. But a group of shoppers in Sydney, Australia, were shocked to find a surprise visitor at their local grocery store.

Shoppers in Sydney found a three-metre snake nestled in the aisle of a supermarket. In a clip posted on social media, the python can be seen sticking out of the spice shelf as he knocked the condiments to the ground.

The 13-second video has gone viral since then.

The caption of the clip said, “Crikee, only in Australia!” The post added that there was “a lovely person who was very familiar with this type of species,” adding that she “safely looked after the good looking culprit”.

The caption referred to 23-year-old Helaina Alati who came face to face with the reptile in the spice section. She said the snake was “just 20cm from my face”. She recognised the species was a non-poisonous variety of snake known as Diamond python.

The young wildlife rescuer did not panic. Instead, she filmed the creature and informed the store management about it. Alati came back with some safety equipment and transferred the snake out of the supermarket. She released it into some bushland nearby.

Diamond pythons are found in the bushland areas and national parks around Sydney. The species often goes undetected due to their nocturnal and slow-moving nature.

Alati guessed the snake had probably sneaked into the supermarket at night. She added that the whole staff was taking photographs of the python, claiming “it’s the most exciting thing that’s happened in a little while given lockdown.”