Survivor 49 Contestant Bitten By Venomous Snake — Jeff Probst Reveals What Happened Next

Survivor 49 just ran into the kind of real-world danger the show constantly warns you about but rarely has to deal with: a poisonous sea snake actually bit a player. It happened fast, it was scary, and it changed the season.

What went down

• Day 6 in Fiji: Kele tribe member Jake Latimer, 36, was bitten on the foot by a black-and-white banded Sea krait (yes, the venomous kind).
• Production moved immediately: medics got Jake onto a boat and over to the show’s base-camp medical center, which is always set up and standing by.
• The medical team was led by Dr. Barry, filling in for longtime medical director Dr. Joe Rowles.
• Good news amid the chaos: doctors determined it was a dry bite — basically a warning nip with no venom injected.
• Bad news for the game: even without venom, the combination of the environment, physical strain, and mental stress meant Jake — an expectant father — was not cleared to return.

On his way out, Jake said he came to play for himself, his dad, and his kid, and yes, to bring home some money. He also made it clear this wasn’t the exit he imagined.

"For something like this to pull me out of the game, it's just not my fault. Cause I was doing good and I know I could win this show. But, doctor's orders, man. It's been an absolute pleasure, Mr. Probst."

Probst breaks it down

Jeff Probst told viewers this was a first for the show — not the typical medical scare, but a literal sea-snake bite. He walked the audience through the response: Jake was whisked onto a boat, taken to the base medical center, and cared for immediately. Probst also briefed the tribe, calling the situation serious and noting that a Sea krait’s venom is considered enormously potent — roughly an order of magnitude more dangerous than a rattlesnake — though again, Jake’s specific bite turned out to be dry. Jake was doing well under care.

In a follow-up chat with Entertainment Weekly, Probst said Jake stayed remarkably calm throughout, and he pointed out how unusual this was. According to Fijian crew, doctors, and wildlife experts on hand, they hadn’t even heard of a Sea krait biting a human out there. So, yes, about as rare as it gets — and about as nerve-racking as TV gets.

Will we see Jake again?

Fans are already lobbying for a do-over, flooding Jake’s Instagram comments with calls for him to return for Survivor 50. No official word, but the sentiment is loud and clear.