Incredible details have emerged of how a bloke fought off an enormous five metre crocodile with a machete after it mauled and ‘death-rolled’ his mate.
Lachlan McDougall Monk, 29, wouldn’t be alive today if it wasn’t for the heroic actions of colleague Rowan ‘Rowdy’ Sutton after an crocodile egg collecting mission in the Northern Territory almost ended in tragedy last Thursday.
NT WorkSafe is now investigating what industry sources described as a ‘one in a million’ event.
Both men are lucky to survive almost a year after another egg collector recently died on a similar mission.
The pair were retrieving eggs from a nest in a remote area along the Daly River south of Darwin when the croc lunged at the men and knocked them into the shallow water.
Rowan Sutton (pictured on a previous job) saved the life of his mate who was mauled by a 5m crocodile last Thursday
The crocodile latched on to McDougall Monk’s right leg, dragged him away and death-rolled him at least twice, The Australian reported.
Sutton attacked the crocodile with a machete until it eventually let go.
Due to the remote location, the men’s coworkers in an airboat performed first aid at the scene before McDougall Monk was winched to safety in a private helicopter and flown to a hanger, where paramedics were waiting.
He was airlifted to Darwin for urgent surgery before being transferred to Adelaide – and later Sydney – in a critical condition.
McDougall Monk’s leg was so savaged there are fears he may lose his leg. He’s now in a serious but stable condition.
Rowan ‘Rowdy’ Sutton (pictured right) attacked the massive crocodile with a machete until the predator let go of his coworker’s leg
Sutton reportedly told Instagram followers to ‘see the sunrise’ and ‘seize the day’ in the wake of his harrowing ordeal.
An industry source described the near-tragedy as a freak incident and that both men are ‘extremely lucky’ to still be alive.
‘I’ve worked with a lot of crocs in my life and I’ve never come across anything like that in the wild,’ they told The Australian.
‘No one’s ever seen it before.
‘I don’t know how they got out of there alive.’
The near tragedy comes almost a year after a cast member of television series Outback Wrangler died in a helicopter crash while on a similar mission.
The pair were on a crocodile egg (stock image) collecting mission when the job almost ended in tragedy
Rowan ‘Rowdy’ Sutton urged Instagram followers to ‘seize the day’ following his terrifying encounter with a 5m crocodile
Chris Wilson, 34, was killed last February when his helicopter collided with trees and the ground in West Arnhem Land.
Some of those who rushed to McDougall Monk’s aid in a private helicopter last Thursday had also attended the scene in West Armen Land where Mr Wilson was killed last February.owan Sutton
Mr Wilson was attached to the line using a harness so he could harvest eggs from difficult to access crocodile nests. His close mate, Outback Wrangler star Matt Wright and two other men were later charged in relation to the incident.
NT WorkSafe banned the practice of collecting crocodile eggs while suspended from a helicopter with a harness in the wake of the tragedy.
Chris ‘Willow’ Wilson (pictured) was killed in a helicopter crash while collecting crocodile eggs last February
