A crocodile handler has died after being attacked by a crocodile while working inside an enclosure at a wildlife park in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea.
The worker, whose identity has not been released, was attacked at Adventure Park on Saturday, September 5, while reportedly attempting to feed a crocodile.
He was rushed to 3 Mile General Hospital for treatment but succumbed to his injuries at about 7am on Sunday, September 6.
Footage of the horrifying incident circulated on social media, showing the injured worker clinging to the edge of a pool as bystanders desperately tried to assist him.
The crocodile appeared to have its jaws locked around the man’s legs while a person outside the enclosure used a pole in an attempt to help free him. Another individual was also seen supporting the victim as onlookers gathered around the enclosure.
An eyewitness, Gibson John, told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) that the attack occurred as the handler approached the crocodile with a chicken.
“He brought the chicken to the fence and the crocodile attacked the person and tried to bring him into the pool,” John said.
He said he contacted St John Ambulance after witnessing the attack but claimed the crocodile kept hold of the man’s legs for more than an hour before emergency responders arrived.
According to John, security guards at the park did not have firearms and instead gave the victim a small iron rod to use while they waited for the police and ambulance crew.
“He was in severe pain but he couldn’t scream,” John said, describing the victim’s condition during the ordeal.
“The only thing I could hear him say was, ‘I haven’t done anything wrong.’”
John said he later learned that the victim had lost a leg before he was taken to hospital.
The deceased worker was reportedly from the Western Islands in northern Papua New Guinea and had worked at the wildlife park for about two years.
Following the tragedy, Adventure Park has been closed indefinitely, while colleagues who witnessed the attack are reportedly mourning the handler at a funeral home.
Authorities are expected to investigate the circumstances surrounding the fatal attack.
