CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — Two Chapel Hill, North Carolina high school students are reflecting on a survival story that turned an end-of-year camping trip into a near-death experience.

Last week, 17-year-old Zain Shah and 18-year-old Kevin Foley, both seniors at Chapel Hill High School, were fishing in the Pisgah National Forest in western North Carolina when their buddy trip nearly took a deadly turn.

As the two walked up the side of a riverbank to find a better spot to fly fish, Shah felt a “prick” above his ankle, looking down to find a timber rattlesnake coiled beneath the log they had just crossed, and a bite mark on his lower leg.

“I was scared; I was terrified,” Shah said.

In an instant, the classmates found themselves in a life-or-death situation. Shah said he immediately understood the serious nature of the bite, photographing the snake in case first responders needed to know which antivenom to administer. The teenagers were about 2 miles from their car, in a remote part of the woods with limited cell service.

“When it happened, I was like super scared because I thought that we were so far out that, like, there’s not that much I can do. So, I was just trying to keep him calm,” Foley said.

Fortunately, Foley was able to reach 911, and an operator stayed on the line with him for nearly two hours, instructing him to wrap Shah’s wound in a towel while first responders could get to them. About two hours later — members of the NCHART, or North Carolina Helicopter Aquatic Rescue Team — a specialized unit that includes North Carolina National Guard members– flew a Blackhawk helicopter into the forest to airlift Shah out.

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The snakebite victim credits Foley, NCHART, the 911 operator and all the local first responders with saving his life and preventing a tragedy.

“I’m just so grateful to everyone because, I mean, they saved my life,” he said.

Two helicopter rides later, Shah was administered multiple rounds of antivenom in a Tennessee hospital, where he stayed for the next three days. Both teens are now back home in Chapel Hill, and Shah says he feels more or less himself while continuing to receive precautionary blood draws.

On Saturday, both seniors will walk at their graduation from Chapel Hill High School, saying the day will be that much more special after the ordeal they went through together.

“I feel just so grateful to be alive, honestly,” Shah said.

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