Apocalyptic Videos Show Snakes Roaming in Floodwaters in China

Videos taken in southern China show hundreds of snakes — some of them venomous — roaming in the floodwaters.

After a reptile breeding facility in the Chinese province of Guangxi was swept away by floodwaters triggered by typhoon Maysak, hair-raising videos of snakes have surfaced across social media.

The majority of the snakes are king ratsnakes and cobras, the latter of which is venomous; at least one person has died after being bitten.

INSANE: 900 Snakes, Including Venomous Cobras, Escape into Village from Breeding Farm After Massive Flooding in China. pic.twitter.com/thm0lVavPn

— Daily Loud (@DailyLoud) July 11, 2026

Some of the videos have been shared by Chinese state media, while citizens have been uploading their own footage to sites like Weibo and Rednote. One clip shows villagers excitedly trying to catch one of the reptiles with nets. One man literally snatches it out of the water by its neck. Authorities warn a snake bite can be fatal.

The villagers began to catch the 900 escaped snakes on their own. pic.twitter.com/VAHYpIqN7I

— Akinkunmi | Akijos Electrical (@Real_Akinkunmi) July 11, 2026

CNN reports that there are possibly 900 snakes on the loose around the city of Hengzhou in the southern part of China. Its one million residents are being warned not to approach the creatures, as hospitals prepare for a possible influx of people with snakebites and snakecatchers make their way to the stricken area.

Those aren't duckies in that water 😱 pic.twitter.com/NcHyaPlH32

— ThatOneGuy55 (@Tesla7771) July 11, 2026

The area is well-known for breeding snakes and the meat is seen as a nourishing meal among locals. However, snakes are generally bred for medical reasons.

One snakebite victim told the media that “hundreds of snakes escaped all at once,” adding he has seen five or six of them.

The victim who died reportedly couldn’t make it to a hospital because all of the roads were cut off by flooding, and she was unable to obtain treatment before the venom took hold.

Over 900 snakes escaped including venomous cobras after heavy rain flooded a breeding farm in southern chinapic.twitter.com/FmZVkZUPTa

— Curio 𝑿 (@curious_X_) July 11, 2026

It’s not just snakes either, Guigang Zoo found itself overwhelmed by floodwaters and several animals — including two zebras, a humpback ox, ostriches, emus, and miniature horses — escaped. The zoo owner says staff risked their lives to contain the big cat cages.

“We could not allow predators to escape during the flood and create an additional public safety risk,” Yin Feifei says. Three lions died in the floods.

Tens of thousands of pigs have also been swept away in the flood, with one being picked up by a claw crane like an arcade game.

Villagers in China use excavator to rescue pigs from Typhoon Maysak floods

We have “flying” pigs in 2026! 🐷🪽 pic.twitter.com/xTyyr95J9W

— MustShareNews (@MustShareNews) July 9, 2026

At least 39 people have died in Guangxi, with rescue and clean-up efforts still ongoing from typhoon Maysak.

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