09.06.2026 11:31
In the Hacı Sait Mosque in Antalya's Muratpaşa district, the congregation performing ablution initially mistook a 1.5-meter-long black snake on the floor for a plastic toy. After the snake moved, causing great panic, fire crews arrived and engaged in a game of cat and mouse with it. The snake escaped hooked tools and slipped into a drain; when it couldn't be caught, all possible exit holes were sealed, allowing the congregation to breathe a sigh of relief.
A 1.5-meter-long black snake that took refuge in the fountain of a mosque in Antalya caused fearful moments for the congregation. Initially thought to be a plastic toy because it remained motionless, the snake suddenly moved, causing chaos. After escaping the fire department's capture operation and hiding in the water drain, the holes were sealed, and the congregation could finally breathe a sigh of relief.
The incident occurred last Sunday at the Hacı Sait Mosque in the Bahçelievler neighborhood of Muratpaşa district, Antalya. Citizens coming to the mosque for afternoon prayers saw a pitch-black snake about 1.5 meters long on the ground when they went to the ablution fountain area. Suspicious because the snake remained still for a long time, the congregation initially thought someone had left a 'plastic toy snake' there as a joke. However, when the congregation approached, the giant snake suddenly moved, causing a wave of panic in the mosque.
CAT AND MOUSE GAME BETWEEN THE FIRE DEPARTMENT AND THE SNAKE
Frightened citizens moved away from the fountain and immediately reported the situation to the 112 Emergency Call Center. Upon the report, Antalya Metropolitan Municipality fire department teams were dispatched to the mosque in a short time. Firefighters entered the mosque with special equipment and began a meticulous effort to catch the snake. Amid the fearful gazes of the congregation, the snake first hid behind the water dispenser's motor section and managed to nimbly evade the firefighters' hooked capture attempts.
IT ESCAPED INTO THE WATER DRAIN, HOLES WERE BLOCKED
Despite the fire department's persistent pursuit, the 1.5-meter snake did not give up and disappeared into the water drain in the fountain. To prevent the snake from coming out of the drainpipe again and harming the congregation, fire department teams and mosque officials took precautions. All open areas and holes where the snake could emerge from the pipe were completely sealed and concreted. After the drains were blocked, the mosque congregation and neighborhood residents breathed a deep sigh of relief and safely returned to the mosque to perform their prayers.
Here are images from those moments;