They were a set of people who needed special care and attention. They were disabled, more so than others. Totally disabled was their plight, with some even unable to comprehend what had hit them, in a country which had been in the throes of a raging conflict for nearly 30 long years.

Earlier listed as “moderately” venomous, the Hump-nosed viper has acquired this ignominious status of highly venomous after its bite indicated rare but potentially fatal systemic envenoming, said Consultant Physician Dr. Kolitha Sellahewa who is Chairman of the Snake-bite Expert Committee of the Sri Lanka Medical Association.