Shocked South Carolina woman walks into bathroom only to find python behind toilet

A South Carolina woman got a terrible start to her Tuesday earlier this month when she found an unexpected guest behind the toilet.

The woman turned on bathroom light in her Columbia apartment around 5 a.m. on Nov. 5 and found a ball python behind the porcelain throne.

She screamed at the sight, telling Richland County deputies that she first called a friend to help take care of the snake, according to an incident report obtained by USA TODAY on Wednesday. The two then called police, and deputies were able to wrangle the python into a pillowcase and out of the bathroom.

No person or snake were harmed in the removal process.

Python moves on to 'forever home,' deputies say

The Richland County Sheriff's Department took to Facebook hours after the removal to share the news, briefly describing the situation and providing photographs.

"Deputies and snake wranglers?!" the agency wrote. "RCSD deputies responded to a call for service about a snake in the bathroom! Understandably so, this resident was ready to find a new place with no snakes and needed a report."

Shannon Huffman, master deputy, "knew exactly what do" when she arrived, facilitating a safe removal, the sheriff's department wrote in the post.

"We were able to provide a solution to the resident quickly and save the snake’s life," Master deptuty Alexandra Salrin told The State. “This was definitely a unique call for service for us."

It was not immediately clear how the snake ended up in the woman's apartment, but the agency suspects it was a pet and may have escaped from a neighboring apartment, The State reported.

Another deputy at the department took the snake in because no one has come forward to claim the snake, Salrin shared with The State.