Women In Banyuasin, South Sumatra, Were Attacked By Crocodiles While Fishing

Officers and residents are still looking for a woman who was attacked by a crocodile in Banyuasin, South Sumatra (ANTARA)

PALEMBANG - The joint team is still looking for the whereabouts of a woman from Ganesha Mukti Village Route 15, Banyuasin Regency, South Sumatra, Karsiti (45) who was the victim of an estuarine crocodile attack.

The victim was attacked by a crocodile while fishing with his child in a canal about 15 meters from the victim's house.

Muara Padang Police Chief AKP Marinus Ginting said the victim was pounced on and pulled by a crocodile into a three-meter-deep canal on Sunday, May 30 evening. Until Tuesday, June 1, noon the victim had not been found.

"This is already the second day of the search, a joint team of Police, TNI, BPBD, BKSDA assisted by residents is still combing the canal to the Taro River flow which is one kilometer away," he said, quoted by Antara.

Victim Karsiti and her son, Selin (17) went fishing in a canal not far from her house. The two of them sat side by side on the edge of the canal with poor lighting conditions while fishing.

At that time the water was at high tide and the height was almost equal to the canal embankment. It is suspected that due to the tide, a crocodile approached the two and immediately grabbed it with a sideways sweeping motion.

The crocodile's initial strike actually targeted Selin, but he tried to jump back so that the crocodile's strike hit his mother's body on the side, the crocodile immediately pulled her mother into the canal very quickly.

"His son had a hard time trying to help because it was dark, so he immediately went home asking for help," he said.

AKP Ginting added that the search process would continue until the victim was found, he admitted that the joint team and residents had difficulties because they only relied on manual tools in the search. Even the residents plan to call the crocodile handler so that the victim is found immediately.

"Until now there have been no signs of the appearance of crocodiles or the bodies of the victims," he explained.

He said that along the canal there had been warnings regarding the presence of crocodiles because the canal was connected to the flow of the Taro River which is the habitat of estuarine crocodiles. Residents actually often encounter estuarine crocodiles in the canal.