60 Years Old Grandmother Was Attacked By Crocodiles In Telaga Kabau Malut, The SAR Team Conducted A Search
The joint SAR team is searching for an elderly woman named Nurbadi Panikfat (60), a resident of the Sula Islands Regency, North Maluku (Malut), who was reported missing after being strongly suspected of being attacked by a crocodile in Telaga Kabau.
Head of the Sanana SAR Alert Unit Post, Rizki Rifandi, explained the chronology of the incident based on the victim's family statement that at around 06.10 WIT the victim left the house to urinate in the bathroom located near Telaga Kabau.
But 10 minutes later, at around 06.20 WIT, a number of residents who were not far from the location heard screams for help from the direction of the monument.
Until the evening of the intensive search carried out by the joint SAR team with residents is still ongoing.
"As soon as residents headed to the source of the sound, they no longer saw the victim and what was seen was a crocodile walking into the water," said Rizki when contacted from Ternate, Sunday, by Antara.
Residents together with the victim's family, he said, immediately carried out a search and search around the location. However, the initial effort was fruitless. It is strongly suspected that the victim had been dragged by a crocodile into the waters of Telaga.
The family then reported this incident to the Sanana SAR Alert Unit to ask for help.
After receiving a report during the day at around 14:10 WIT, the Sanana SAR Alert Unit Rescue Team immediately moved to the Case Location (LKP) using rescue carriers, carrying rubber boats, outboard engines, and marine SAR equipment.
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Arriving at the location, he said, the team immediately coordinated with village officials, the police, the TNI, and local residents to develop a search strategy.
SAR operations are carried out using a water surface sweeping method using rubber boats and ground monitoring at points suspected of being crocodile hiding places. Until this news was revealed, the victim was still not found.
The elements involved in the search include the Sanana SAR Alert Unit, West Sulawesi Police, Babinsa Kabau Village, as well as the community, and the families of the victims.
This incident adds to the list of crocodile attacks in the North Maluku region, especially in the freshwater area which is the habitat of the wildlife, so residents are advised to increase vigilance, especially when doing activities around rivers, lakes, or coasts, which have the potential to be a crocodile cruise area.
The joint SAR team plans to continue the search operation for the next few days if the victim has not been found, by expanding the sweeping area and monitoring the movement of crocodiles in the area.