A terrified homeowner fled from his bathroom when a large coconut snake reared its head as he was about to take a bath.

The villager, Apichit, encountered the sizeable serpent while in the restrom next to his garden in Prachuap Khiri Khan province, Thailand, on October 19.

Fearing the creature was venomous, he refused to take chances and called volunteers for help.

He said: 'After I closed the bathroom door behind me, I saw the snake right in front of me. It looked terrified of me and crept into the bathtub as I hurried outside.'

Rescuers used a snake pole to bring the wild creature to heel. However, it fought back, and the overly cautious officers kept their distance thinking the snake was a deadly cobra.

When they realised it was a non-venomous coconut snake instead, they grabbed the reptile by its tail barehanded and hauled it out of the restroom.

It measured around 7ft long and was sealed inside a sack to later be released into the wild.