Medical personal rushed a 33-year-old man on an Australian Island to the hospital after being attacked by a crocodile while snorkeling on Wednesday.
The unnamed victim suffered from wounds to his head and neck region while snorkeling yesterday off Lizard Island. Lizard Island is a remote Australian Island on the Great Barrier Reef in northern Queensland.
The Royal Flying Door Service said in a statement that their team assisted in the incident. They said the man is in stable condition. The service posted on their Facebook page about the attack.
“The Royal Flying Doctor Service (Queensland Section) transferred an adult male patient from Lizard Island to Cairns yesterday evening (Wednesday 23 September) following a crocodile attack.”
The spokesperson from the Department of Environment and Science said in a statement to numerous media outlets that the man was bit by the crocodile in waters near Anchor Bay, just offshore of the island’s luxury holiday resort, around 4 p.m.
At the scene of the attack, medical experts assisted with the man’s wounds before being taken to Cairns Hospital. Reports say that the man has no life-threatening injuries.
A team wildlife officer will be sent out to the area around Lizard Island to attempt to “locate and remove” the crocodile, said the spokesperson. “The manager of the Lizard Island Resort has offered the use of two of the resort’s vessels to assist with those efforts.”
Reporter believe that he victim is a staff member at the Lizard Island Resort. The Resort is currently not in operation due to the pandemic. The hotel plans on opening its door to guests again on December 14.
Saltwater Crocodile
Authorities are linking the attack to a saltwater crocodile. The Queensland government says the animals dwell on “beaches and offshore islands in the Great Barrier Reef.”
The saltwater crocodile typically grows up to 17 feet and weighs as much as 1,000 pounds; however, it isn’t uncommon to find one as big as 23 feet long. They can swim up to 18 mph.
In 2015 a man in his 50s was bit by an 8-foot crocodile while snorkeling at Anchor Bay. The injury required surgery on his left arm.
[H/T Newsweek]
