Tradie, 60, describes the horrifying moment he was mauled by a saltwater crocodile while snorkelling at the Great Barrier Reef
- Mick Curwen was snorkelling off the Lizard Island coast when he was attacked
- The 60-year-old felt felt something slam into his arm and then saw a crocodile
- A saltwater crocodile had torn at his elbow, leaving him covered in blood
A tradie has described the terrifying moment he was attacked by a saltwater crocodile while snorkelling on the Great Barrier Reef.
Mick Curwen, 60, had finished a nine-month stint working at the Lizard Island Resort when his wife convinced him to experience the annual coral spawning.
He had just entered the water, heading out with a group to go snorkelling off Anchor Bay around 7pm on December 2, 2105, when he felt something slam into his left arm.
Mick Curwen (pictured), 60, had finished a nine-month stint working at the Lizard Island Resort when his wife Anita convinced him to experience the annual coral spawning
He had just entered the water, heading out with a group to go snorkelling off Anchor Bay around 7pm on December 2, 2105, when he felt something slam into his left arm
At first Mr Curwen thought he may have been hit by a boat, but as he looked up through his mask he was horrified to see the yellow underbelly of a huge 2.5m long saltwater crocodile.
'I thought ''that's not a good thing, and crikey — I'd better get out of here'',' he told Cairns Post.
Mr Curwen was unaware the huge reptile had torn at his elbow and the salt water had begun to fill with blood.
Luckily for Mr Curwen, in the shock of the moment, he had shone his flashlight into the crocodile's eyes, scaring it away before it could injure him further.
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Mr Curwen managed to make it back shore, scanning the water as he did the reverse crab walk up the beach and made his way to the nearest bar for help.
At first, the bar's staff did not believe he had been attacked but the sight of his arm covered in blood forced them to take action.
They bandaged his arm up before he was flown to Cairns Hospital where he spent four days in the intensive care unit.
A huge 2.5m long saltwater crocodile had latched onto Mr Curwen's elbow (stock image)
In the hospital he discovered just how close he was to death as the crocodile had latched on to just the fleshy part of his arm.
'If it had gone a few more millimetres in, it would have got the bone, and grabbed a good bite of me.
'Best case scenario: people would have called me ''Lefty''.'
He was pumped full of antibiotics to avoid infection.
The Department of Environment and Heritage Protection tracked down the crocodile and shot it dead as they considered it too great a risk to humans.
Mr Curwen has urged others to always be cautious when they are in croc territory.
He advised people to be aware of their surroundings, and make sure they are in a group when in the water.
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