Residents of Tema community 6 are living with fear of attacks by snakes.

They claim the snakes which include boa, python, and anaconda are among a variety of snakes bred by some Chinese tenants three years ago in a house located about 60 meters away from the Tsin Tao Hotel and Restaurant.

The surroundings and compound of the house which was abandoned over a year ago are overgrown with weeds, part of the fence wall has gone down and snakes have been escaping through it to nearby houses.

Speaking to the Ghanaian Times yesterday, a resident of Community 6, ACP (Rtd) Joseph Tobiah, said though nobody had been bitten by a snake, they were worried because the residents had reported killing one or two snakes in their compounds every month.

“For instance two weeks ago, we killed a snake measuring about four feet, when it tried fruitlessly to enter my house through a vent that was covered with a net,” he revealed.

He said a passerby saw the reptile creeping on the wall and raised the alarm, adding that was the second time a snake was killed in his compound.

During power outages, people in the area are scared to venture out for fear of being bitten by snakes; he said.

According to him, he reported the issue to the Environmental Protection Agency office at Tema but they were yet to take any action.

Meanwhile, the residents have resorted to the burning of used tyres to drive away the snakes.

ACP (Rtd) Tobiah explained that about 10 years ago, the abandoned house served as a club house for the now defunct Ghana Textiles Manufacturing Company (GTMC).

Residents, however, differed on the purpose for which the snakes were bred.

While some thought the snakes were bred for consumption, others thought they were just pets.

Kofi Ansah, a mechanic, said the breeders ate the snakes while Suzzy Akotia, a trader said the snakes were kept as pets.

ACP (Rtd) Tobiah said squatters in the area also use the compound as a place of convenience, criminals as their hideout.

When contacted, the Tema Metropolitan Public Health Officer, Mr. Edward Shardey, said the Tema Metropolitan Assembly was not aware that some people were breeding snakes in the area.

He said the law frowned on breeding dangerous reptiles in residential areas and swore to get the owners clear and disinfect the

Efforts to contact the owners . of the property proved futile as security personnel at the Tema Textiles Company Limited (TIL) were not willing to cooperate. TIL now owns GTMC.