A housewife died after being bitten by a venomous snake in Daulatpur upazila of Kushtia, with her family allegedly wasting crucial time taking her to a traditional healer instead of a hospital.

The deceased was identified as Jannatul Ferdous Sagarika, 26, wife of Nure Alam Jiku of Thotar Para village in Ramkrishnapur union and daughter of Jamal Uddin.

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According to locals and police, Sagarika was bitten by a venomous snake around 11pm Thursday while she was going to a toilet outside her home.

Instead of taking her to a hospital immediately, her family took her to a local traditional healer, where she was subjected to prolonged treatment involving incantations.

As her condition deteriorated, she was taken to Daulatpur Upazila Health Complex around 2:30am. However, the attending physician declared her dead upon arrival.

Dr Towhidul Hasan Tuhin, family planning officer of Daulatpur Upazila Health Complex, said the patient had died before being brought to the hospital.

He said the health complex had sufficient stocks of antivenom to treat snakebite patients.

“Instead of relying on traditional healers or quack treatment due to superstition, the patient should be brought to hospital immediately. Had she received timely treatment, her life might have been saved,” he said.

Daulatpur Police Station Officer-in-Charge Khaledur Rahman said police went to the spot after receiving information from the hospital.

The deceased’s father, Jamal Uddin, filed an unnatural death case with the police station, he said.

The body was handed over to the family after completion of legal procedures.