Funny video shows 'hard as nails' California coroner who can't cope with a dead snake

Californian deputy coroner Amy Thurau has seen many crime scenes in her time without flinching but even her considerable experience with corpses was not enough to stop her from feeling uneasy around the dead body of something a lot smaller - a snake.

In a video posted by the Solano County Sheriff's Office, Thurau, is seen to be looking rather squeamish at having to deal with the body of a snake on the road, presumably killed by a passing car.

"Com'on, you're a coroner!" her colleague can be heard saying behind the camera as he films Thurau's awkward interaction with the lifeless reptile.

Colleagues were said to describe Thurau as "hard as nails" and resilient to any kind of devastating crime scene or catastrophe.

However there was more than a hint of glee in the Facebook post by Solano County Sheriff's Office which said: "We found ONE thing Deputy Thurau is not so comfortable with".

Posted on Thursday (13 July), the video had been shared almost 1,500 times and viewed around 160,000 times at the time of writing.

Many of those commenting were supportive of Thurau, saying they might not have dealt as well with the carcass. "You go girl cause I would have taken my [gun] and fired a few rounds into it first then ran him over then maybe found a large stick to clear him from the road," wrote Sarah Healy.