I was swallowed whole by a 14ft crocodile – it almost ripped my legs off until my brave wife bashed the beast with a LOG

8 months ago 3

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A FATHER who was attacked by a crocodile has revealed how his wife saved his life – by hitting it with a log.

The brave father-of-three told how he had been fishing with his family at a dam in South Africa when a crocodile ambushed him.

Crocodile survivor Anthony pictured with his children and saviour wife[/caption]

Anthony suffered significant wounds to his legs and body after the attack[/caption]

He also has single tooth mark wounds across his body[/caption]

Anthony Joubert, 37, said his son had been reeling in a catch when the line got snagged by a tree – leaving the bass dangling from a branch above an inch of water.

Anthony walked out into the lake to retrieve the fish, unaware of the sinister being lurking underneath.

He said: “This crocodile must have been lying in ambush because all of a sudden it exploded from the water and had its jaws round my leg and knocked me flat.

“There was water everywhere then it adjusted its grip and had my second leg in its mouth just below my belt and started thrashing its head to the left and right with such power.

“I could not see my legs and could just see its teeth and those evil eyes just looking at me as it slowly backed towards deeper water where it would take me down deep and drown me.

“I remembered about guging at the eyes and forced my thumbs into them and it just shook me like a rag doll and then my boss Johan ran into the water and grabbed my trouser belt.”

The brave father said that he kept punching it and desperately tried to gouge its eyes out, but the more he fought, the more the beast fought back.

He said the giant croc was shaking him so much he thought his legs were going to get ripped off.

His family have described the attack as straight out of a horror movie, claiming that the beast was at least four metres long and a metre wide.

Anthony added: “When you look at the wounds it is incredible that I didn’t lose one or both legs. I will never forgets its teeth and how it looked at me.

“It became a tug of war with the crocodile pulling and Johan pulling and then from nowhere my wife Annalize appeared splashing through the water with a huge log from the dam bank.”

He said his wife kept smashing the croc over the head with “terrific force”, refusing to stop until the beast stopped its attack.

“She began smashing this giant crocodile over the head again and again with terrific force and after five or six huge bashes the crocodile’s jaws opened and it slid away” he said.

Anthony’s boss Johan van der Colff, 36, and Annalize, 33, grabbed the seriously injured victim by the arms and dragged his blood soaked body up the bank away from danger.

Johan’s wife Bianca, 39, grabbed towels, bandages and antiseptic and began to perform first aid on the crocodile’s victim.

She later said: “I have never seen anything like it even on the TV. Statistics say that 1 in 100 people survive a crocodile attack. I don’t think anyone has ever survived being half way down a croc.

“When I tried to clean his wounds I found three crocodile teeth still in a stomach hole”.

Anthony also added: “I thought my moment had come and I know out here in Africa if a crocodile has such a grip on you then it is impossible to escape – it is just unheard of.

“I was waiting for the death roll and for it to drown me but despite the size of this beast Johan and Annalize ran into the dam and took it on and saved me from being eaten.

“I never knew my wife had the strength or the power to beat a creature that like off of me. Between her and Johan who was in the water dragging me back they saved my life.”

The lucky escape continues to play on his mind, Anthony said.

He said he sees the beast every time he shuts his eyes, admitting that it will be a long time before he ever stands near water again.

However, Anthony remains grateful that it was him who went out into the water and no one else.

All three of his children, JP, 12, Liza, 10, and Ashleigh, 6, witness their father’s attack.

Annalize said that it has hardly sunk in that she saved her husband’s life, saying she had been in severe shock.

She praised her instincts, saying her reaction was to just grab a log and batter it over the head whilst screaming at it.

Annalize said the terrifying beast eventually opened its jaws and she pounced on the opportunity to pull her husband out of the water.

“We were just terrified the crocodile would come back again and tried to get him up the farm as quick as possible and Bianca was there packing the wounds and bandaging them,” she said.

“I was terrified of him bleeding to death and infection from the crocodile’s mouth and the dirty water and we loaded Johan into his truck and he rushed him to hospital.”

Johan, who runs the fire prevention service Alfa Fire, rushed Anthony to the public hospital and took him in the A & E department.

The next day, Anthony’s wounds were found to be filthy, still covered in mud, and largely untreated.

Johan discharged him and took him to a nearby private hospital – where Anthony’s family have been subject to a R100,000 (£4,200) fee.

It is suspected that costs may treble.

Bianca, who stabilised Anthony before he was rushed to hospital, said: “If he had staying in the public hospital he would have died – there was no choice to be had.

She said: “Anthony’s wounds are now clean and are being left open so they can be kept clean and dressed and disinfected and then in time it will be skin grafts and hell of a lot of healing.

“We have got a fund-raising page to try and help his family with his medical bills as it will be three months at least until he is up and about so that is no wage to help them get by.

“I hope people can find it in their hearts to donate what they can to help him.”

Anthony has four deep wounds on his legs and stomach and an assortment of single tooth wounds and admits he is extremely lucky the crocodile missed his private parts.

He said: “The doctor said an inch to the side and they would have gone. He also said the teeth missed my femoral artery by literally 1mm. If it got that I would have bled out.”

Anthony went on to thank his wife’s bravery once again, saying that she saved him from the most horrific death imaginable.

He added: ” I have a long fight to get back to health but I was one meal the crocodile was not having.”

Although a sign at the dam does warn of crocodiles, locals say that none have been seen for years.

There are now plans to capture the rogue beast and relocate it.

The Nile crocodile is an ambush predator which can grow to over 20 feet long, weighing over 2000lbs.

The terrifying beast is also known to kill over 3000 people a year in Africa.

To donate towards Anthony’s medical fees, individuals can send money to FNB Bank, AC Joubert, Acc No: 63094446713: Branch Code: 255355: Swift Code: FIRNZAJJ