Husband jumps on croc's back to save wife
April 3, 2008 - 12:32PM
A woman has escaped with bite wounds after her husband rescued her from the jaws of a crocodile while they were swimming in a Northern Territory national park.
The 2.5 metre saltwater crocodile was trying to drag the 36-year-old woman underwater at Litchfield National Park yesterday when her husband jumped on the reptile's back and wrestled her free, police said.
"The animal released the woman and swam into a concrete culvert," police said.
The woman was taken to Woolaning community for first aid treatment for eight puncture wounds in her right thigh, a puncture wound in her left thigh and a severe cut to one of her fingers.
She was last night transferred to the Royal Darwin Hospital and a spokeswoman today said she was in a stable condition.
The woman was attacked about 5.30pm (CST) yesterday while wading in water only 1.5 metres deep at the Bamboo Creek Crossing at Litchfield, a national park popular with tourists and about 160 kilometres south-west of Darwin.
The crossing is not a designated swimming area.
Ranger Luke Playford said it was the first crocodile attack in the Litchfield National Park, which is regularly trawled for the reptiles.
"The water is only 1.5 metres deep where the crocodile attacked the woman - which highlights that at this time of the year, following the wet season rains, saltwater crocodiles can find their way into rivers and creeks where they are not normally found," he said.
Mr Playford said it was an "opportunistic attack" and that parks and wildlife would today survey designated swimming areas and set traps for any crocodiles.
No comments:
Post a Comment