Two soldiers have narrowly survived being death-rolled by a 2.5 metre crocodile off the coast of Cape York after one of the men stabbed the reptile in the eye.
Key points:
- The soldiers were swimming off Cape York when the croc attacked
- One of the men stabbed the croc in the eye before the men clambered back on board their boat
- It took eight hours to get the men to hospital in Cairns, 800 kilometres away
The men had been swimming off Portland Roads, north of Lockhart River, on Friday night when a crocodile attacked the soldier in his 20s.
A local couple who helped the soldiers get back to land have revealed the second man, in his 30s, pried his mate out of the crocodile's jaws, sustaining injuries himself, before he stabbed the reptile in the eye with a knife.
Katie Goodwin and Jayson Watkin own businesses at Portland Roads, around 800 kilometres north of Cairns. They said they were asked by Lockhart River police to assist with the operation until officers could get there.
Mr Watkin found his neighbour's tinny, because his own boat was beached, and went out to assist the men.
Man pried friend out of croc's jaws
Ms Goodwin said the soldiers relayed details of the ordeal as they raced to get them medical help.
"One of the guys, he saved his mate, his mate was in the jaws of the croc. They were able to pry the jaws open," she said.
"The croc then jumped onto him, grabbed him by the hand [and] death-rolled him about four times," Ms Goodwin said.
"During this time, he was able to process that he had a knife on his belt, and he grabbed the knife, and he stabbed the croc in the eye."
"[The boat] was filled with blood. It wasn't ideal for transporting the two guys that were badly hurt and they needed support in the boat."
Ms Goodwin said crocodiles were a fact of life on Cape York, but that she had never seen a crocodile attack before.
"I couldn't believe what I was seeing, it was like I was in a movie."
Eight-hour rescue mission
Portland Roads is one of the northern-most communities on the east coast and has poor mobile communications and road access.
Queensland Ambulance Service Senior Operations Supervisor, Denis O'Sullivan, said the process of transferring the patients to Cairns took longer than usual due to the region's inaccessibility.
"It's a very remote location, response times are extended and the whole incident was extended," Mr O'Sullivan said.
Mr O'Sullivan praised army medics who delivered first aid in the form of a tourniquet to the critically injured man.
Mayor of the nearby community of Lockhart River, Cr Wayne Butcher, said the incident highlighted the need for better telecommunication services on Cape York.
"Communication is a serious issue in remote Cape York and I can't say how important it is – we've got to get the right infrastructure out there in Cape York peninsula, to support people. It's a safety issue," Cr Butcher said.
ABC News: Iskhandar Razak
)Investigation underway
Wildlife authorities are investigating the circumstances of the attack.
But Cr Butcher said it should not come as a surprise that there are crocodiles in Cape York waterways.
"There's pretty much a croc on every beach at Cape York and just about on every river of Cape York, so you've got to be careful," Cr Butcher said.
"That particular area there is a crocodile that's local to that area and you just about see him every day, so you simply don't jump in the water.
In a statement, the Department of Defence said it is investigating the incident and continuing to support the affected soldiers and their families.
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2021-08-07 09:46:05Z
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