Snakebite Crisis Grips Bangladesh as Climate Change Drives Deadly Invasion

As of October 2025, Bangladesh is facing a severe snakebite crisis, with hospitals overwhelmed by a surge in venomous snake attacks. The swamplands along the Padma River have become a sanctuary for snakes, and the heavy monsoon rains this year have pushed more of them into human settlements, leaving residents terrified.

Doctors and experts warn that snakebites are on the rise, driven by the effects of climate change. Bangladesh, one of the nations most vulnerable to the impacts of global warming, has seen nearly 15,000 snakebite admissions so far in 2025, with 84 deaths reported. This follows a particularly deadly year in 2024, when 118 people lost their lives to snakebites.

The crisis has taken a devastating toll on farmers like Ananda Mondol, who was bitten by a snake while working in a rice field earlier this year. Mondol spent three days in intensive care, and is still plagued by sleepless nights and persistent muscle pain. His wife, a traditional healer, says the family cannot afford further treatment. Across the villages of northern Bangladesh, similar stories abound as residents live in constant fear of the slithering menace.

Hospitals in the region are struggling to cope, with the Rajshahi Medical College Hospital alone treating over 1,000 snakebite cases in the first nine months of 2025, including 206 bites from venomous species. Doctors warn that many patients suffer acute kidney failure after being bitten. Authorities are working to import more antivenom, but experts caution that the imported treatments are not always effective, as snake venoms vary by species and region.