We've heard about snakes on a plane, but in an oven? Those slithery serpents can get in about anywhere. But one North Carolina family got a somewhat unpleasant surprise when they planned to pop a frozen pizza in the oven for dinner.
According to CNN affiliate, WRAL, Amber Helm's husband Robert went to preheat their oven last Monday night for what they thought would be a quick pizza dinner.
Once the oven was preheated, Robert put the pizza in. So far so good. But then the family noticed smoke in the kitchen.
"The oven started smoking and I told my boys 'back up' so I can make sure a fire or anything didn't happen," Amber told WRAL. "I looked closely and was like 'Oh my God! That's a friggin' snake.'"
Amber said the snake likely died during the preheating process, and the last time that the family used the oven was on Christmas Day.
"It got in via the holes at the bottom that allow for airflow," Amber said. "We aren't certain yet how it got into the house but assume through our crawl space."
While waiting for the shock to subside, the Helms choose to leave the home with their two children. "I immediately got them out of the house and took them to Applebee's while my husband stayed home and got rid of the snake and a started to air out the house and clean the oven," recalled Amber.
The couple and their children just moved into their home last year and were told by neighbours that they've never experienced anything like this before.