The missing man, 79, was part of a tour group in Drysdale River in Western Australia when he fell into the fast-flowing waters on Monday afternoon and hasn’t been seen since
Fears are growing for the welfare of a man who fell off his kayak and into a crocodile-infested river earlier this week. The 79-year-old man was in the Drysdale River National Park in the Kimberley region in Western Australia’s northwest and was a member of a group on a multi-day tour.
However, he found himself in trouble at approximately 150km west of Wyndham at 1pm on Monday. The man’s friend, 59, quickly jumped in the water in a desperate bid to save him but he was unable to due to the fast-flowing current and instead had to be rescued himself.
Police and emergency services rushed to the area via helicopter and found the missing man’s friend clinging on to a tree, surrounded by fast moving rapids 15 metres from shore. He was picked up from the water and did not require medical treatment, reports News.com.au.
The river is located is about 1,740 miles north of Perth and is inaccessible by road. Parks and Wildlife authorities recommend that people see the area from air and warn visitors that saltwater crocodiles are common and move around the isolated national park.
Their website states: “Extremely rugged and remote wilderness – untouched and amazing from the air. This park is isolated and the terrain is very rugged, you must be completely self sufficient and competent in undertaking extended walks.
“If you are unsure don’t swim, canoe or use small boats in waterways.” Kimberley District Detective Superintendent John Hutchinson noted that serious weather concerns and difficult terrain in the remote area had made it a difficult search and rescue operation.
He added that rain overnight caused water levels to rise, which makes it harder to to carry out the search. “WA Police are committed to the task with officers remaining on scene overnight. The operation is ongoing and we are using every resource at our disposal to bolster search efforts, ” Supt Hutchinson said.
Elsewhere, in December last year a couple managed to escape their flooded car, the blistering heat and two nights of being stalked by a killer crocodile in a remote area of north-west Queensland. The pair, in their 50s, were with their two dogs when they had to be rescued by emergency crews.
They had no food or bottled water and were treated for dehydration and exposure after three days of 40 degree heat. Luckily, they managed to attract attention after writing two large “SOS” signs in the sand.
The incident happened near the Staaten River National Park in Queensland’s Gulf Country, more than 186 miles west of Cairns. State-funded rescue helicopter organisation LifeFlight detailed the rescue, saying the pair were travelling in a 4WD that had been washed away by flood waters after they tried to cross a river and the vehicle was flooded by a large wave.
The couple escaped out of the passenger window and swam through croc-infested waters to shore. The man swam back to get the two dogs out.
Neither of the duo had phones on them, which would have been useless anyway due to the lack of mobile signal. A friend alerted authorities that the couple were overdue and the rescue helicopter took off from Mount Isa before spotting their distress signals below.