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Former Plano girl bit by viper in Cambodia
By Stephanie Flemmons, Staff Writer
A former Plano girl nearly died a week ago in Cambodia from a poisonous snake bite to her toe.
Catherine Rhea, 10, clung to life as her family and doctors desperately searched for the appropriate anti-venom serum to keep her alive.
After dinner July 9, Catherine was bitten while playing outside with her siblings at her family’s home in Phnom Penh, where the family has lived after moving there in April to run an orphanage.
Akemi said Catherine never approached her again to take a look at the wound, so she continued checking her e-mails, assuming she had washed up and gone back outside to play.
About an hour had passed and Akemi said she heard another daughter calling for Catherine and beating on the bathroom door.
Akemi’s husband Bill immediately went to the bathroom calling out Catherine’s name. Just as Bill was about to kick the door down, the door opened and they discovered Catherine was ashen, had blue lips and her eyes were rolling back in her head. Catherine immediately collapsed on the floor.
Akemi said they knew at that point she was dying and immediately carried her to the car to rush her to the hospital.
“I held her and Bill called back to her saying ‘Catherine talk to me, stay awake baby girl,’” Akemi said. “I began praying, don’t let my baby die.”
When they arrived at the hospital, Akemi said Catherine was sweating, purple and catatonic. The doctors discovered two fang marks left by, at that point, an unknown creature.
“An hour had passed and I wondered how much poison and what kind was circulating in her tiny frame,” Akemi said. “Thoughts of a funeral were circulating through my mind.”
The family and doctors faced a roadblock at this point. This hospital did not have anti-venom serum to inject Catherine. They got to work trying to locate the closest place that had the serum.
Akemi said the doctors located a snakebite center two hours away in Kampong Channang, but she was not hopeful with the news. She said the family was their in September during a vision trip and there were not any modern facilities that she could remember. The hospital was mildewed, the stairways reeked of urine and were covered in dust, the beds were rusted out spring cots with no mattresses, screenless windows and families huddled around the beds with food brought from their homes. She said the IV’s resembled one-liter coke bottles that were connected into tiny bodies with thick rubber-like hoses instead of the familiar thin plastic tubing in America.
“I grimaced at the thought of our Catherine having to go to such a place,” Akemi said. “I cried out to God for mercy.”
Doctors injected Catherine with a modern IV, transferred her to a gurney and loaded her in the back of the ambulance for the two-hour transport. A crew of individuals continued searching for closer anti-venom for Catherine. Akemi said all she could do was call out to God and pray.
Twenty-minutes into the ambulance trip, Akemi received a call telling them to turn around. Anti-venom had been located through the U.S. Embassy. They were ordered to return to Phnom Penh to an international SOS facility.
“I continued to pray for Catherine,” Akemi said. “Amazingly she woke up from her unconscious state. She wasn’t talking, but affirmed she could understand and had opened her eyes. Her body was still circulating the venom.”
Once they arrived at the facility, Catherine was examined by doctors, where they confirmed the bite was from a snake, but did not know what kind.
About an hour later, Akemi said the head doctor from Australia arrived. He was an emergency room doctor and cared for several bite victims.
“Jesus is good,” Akemi said. “He gave us a snake doctor.”
The doctor became concerned when she learned that the family did not know what kind of snake bit Catherine. She told them they didn’t have anti-venom that covered all snakes, so they had to determine which kind bit her.
“By this time the doctor concluded by Catherine’s symptoms that she had been bitten by a snake that had hemotoxic not neurotoxic venom,” Akemi said. “This was another good providence. She could have died much earlier from neurotoxic exposure.”
Catherine’s gums began to bleed. There was little equipment at the SOS facility to see inside of Catherine’s body and the blood tests were very limited.
“We needed to get her out of Phnom Penh and to Bangkok, ASAP,” Akemi said. “Dr. Thomas said she would have to be air lifted to Thailand and was working to get approval and to get the ball rolling.”
Akemi and her friend, Michael, rushed back to their home to gather things for the trip. As Akemi packed items, Michael was determined to find the snake that bit Catherine. Akemi said she was skeptical he would find the snake since six hours had passed since incident occurred.
Akemi said she continued praying and asking for more time with Catherine.
“Michael’s call from downstairs broke into my prayer and my thoughts,” Akemi said. “He was yelling up to me that he found the snake.”
Michael killed the snake and placed it in a plastic bag. Akemi said the head was triangular, which was a sign that it was venomous. Akemi then rushed the snake back to the SOS facility where the doctor determined it was a Green Pit Viper. The fang pattern matched the snake bite on Catherine’s toe.
“God was gracious to allow Michael to find the snake after so much time had lapsed,” Akemi said. “Another miracle. Now we had a snake that matched thee bite and the profile of her symptoms. We were told that they shouldn’t risk using the wrong serum because it could just make her condition worse.”
After doctors consulted they injected Catherine with three vials of Green Pit Viper anti-venom serum.
A team of doctors and Akemi and Bill flew to Bangkok, with Catherine who was still on the near death.
A team of EMTs met Catherine at the airport and transported her to Bumrungrad, a state-of-the-art hospital. Catherine was transported to ICU upon arrival.
The next day, Akemi said she returned to learn Catherine was going to be moved to a regular hospital room.
“Her face was a little puffy and her foot was swollen,” Akemi said. “Her toe was necrotic. Catherine sobbed in tears as they wiped the wound.”
Doctors ordered that Catherine stay in the hospital for five days for observation and to make sure her clotting returned to normal.
“I have been so encouraged during this trial,” Akemi said. “I have also been convicted of my need to engage with my children on a deeper level. This is the real world in Cambodia. Primitive conditions compared to Dallas. It was eye opening.”
The Rheas were inspired to move to Cambodia after the death of Akemi’s son, Adrain Porier. Porier was stabbed to death in his Plano apartment in May 2008.
In memory of her son, Akemi and Bill, along with their nine adopted children moved to Cambodia to fill a vision Porier dreamed for many years. She said they plan to build an orphanage and protect the children he loved.
Akemi said Adrain was the family’s inspiration to adopt children in poverty stricken environments.
“Just get as many as you can,” were the words Akemi remembers Adrain saying anytime there was doubt about adopting more.
Contact Stephanie Flemmons at sflemmons@acnpapers.com
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