Driver terrified after finding venomous cobra hiding under pick-up truck

A King Cobra that slithered inside a car engine sparked a frantic chase to catch it.

The 12ft snake was seen inside the machinery of the black Isuzu pick-up truck in Trang, southern Thailand, on April 14.

Driver Somporn Petin, 56, said he was about to get in the vehicle when he noticed the serpent's tail poking out near the front wheel. ''I've never seen any snakes here before so I was very shocked,'' he said.

The farm worker called the local emergency services who arrived to catch the King Cobra. They spent 20 minutes trying to pull it out of the pick-up truck before the King Cobra made a break for freedom and slithered away down the side of Somporn's house.

Luckily, a paramedic who arrived on the scene in case anybody was bitten, snared the deadly reptile. It was then stuffed into a sack and put into the back of an ambulance to be driven away and released back into the wild.

Somporn added: ''I'm so glad they caught the snake. I would not want to stay here if there was a cobra on the loose.''