
31/05/2023
An Australian man was diving at an exclusive resort in Queensland when he was attacked by a saltwater crocodile but somehow managed to save his life.
Survivor Marcus McGowan, 51, has described how he managed to pull his head out of the crocodile's jaws but was also injured in the struggle.
After the incident, he was airlifted to a nearby island hospital and later flown to Cairns for further treatment.
Crocodile attacks are rare in Australia, but there have been several similar incidents in recent months.
McGowan said he was in the water with a group of people about 28km off Haggerstone Island near Cape York when he was attacked from behind and felt bitten.
He said in a statement, "At first I thought it was a shark, but when I reached the top, I realized it was a crocodile." I managed to pry his jaw open enough to get my head out.'
The crocodile is said to be young but Govin said it attacked them again but they were able to push it away. However, this time the baby crocodile bit his hand.
Queensland's Department of Environment says it will investigate the incident, but "finding crocodiles in the open sea can be difficult as these animals often travel tens of kilometers per day."
Crocodiles are common in Australia's northern region but have seen attacks there in recent months.
In February this year, rangers shot a 4.2-metre-long crocodile after it attacked a man.
Earlier this month, the remains of 65-year-old fisherman Kevin Darmody were found inside a 4.1m crocodile on the Kennedy River.
It was the 13th fatal crocodile attack in Queensland since records of crocodile attacks began in 1985.
Ever since crocodile hunting was banned in the state in 1974, the population of crocodiles in the state has increased from around 5,000 to around 30,000.