A reptile handler has had his thumb bitten off during a crocodile attack at a Queensland wildlife park.
Ian Jenkins, the 58-year-old reptile park owner, was attacked at the Snakes Downunder Reptile Park and Zoo near Childers, south of Bundaberg, on Sunday afternoon in front of a large crowd of mostly families.
Mr Jenkins is 'very, very lucky to be alive' according to paramedics, after the crocodile dragged the reptile enthusiast into the water and attempted to do a 'death roll'.
Paramedics received a call about the incident just before 1pm local time, a Queensland Ambulance Service (QAS) spokesman said.
The zoo's website says the saltwater crocodile feeding and commentary session is held at 12.30pm.
The RACQ Careflight Bundaberg rescue helicopter was also sent to the scene.
Mr Jenkins was attempting to gain the attention of a crocodile by holding a chicken in his right hand when the incident happened, an RACQ Careflight spokesman said.
'He's taken his hat off and was holding his hat in his left hand, when the crocodile jumped up and grabbed his hat and his left hand,' the spokesman told AAP.
'The crocodile has bitten his left hand and amputated his left thumb.'
A section of his left hand was torn down to the wrist
He was airlifted to the Bundaberg Base Hospital in a stable condition. He was administered significant pain relief for his injury.
However, the modest animal-lover supposedly apologised profusely to the paramedics for 'causing such a fuss'.
He also suffered a head injury during the incident, the QAS said.
Ian Jenkins will undergo surgery on Sunday.
This is far from his first serious injury inflicted on the job.
Five years ago, Mr Jenkins survived an eastern brown snake bite, which left him fighting for his life.
He was also bitten by a king brown in 2003 and two black snakes before that.
In January 2010, he was preparing an eastern brown snake for an educational show when he was bitten through a bag, causing the father to collapse and lose consciousness.
The then 51-year-old was transported by air to Bundaberg Base Hospital, placed in intensive care and treated with two doses of anti-venom.
He was back performing his snake show just hours after discharging himself from hospital.
Mr Jenkins previously said that his primary concern is his family and that he hates to cause them distress when he suffers an animal-inflicted injury.
"Its something that I'm not very pleased about, because I don't like to put my family through that sort of worry,' he told ABC in 2010 when asked about his snake bite.
His love of reptiles was born during his childhood in Kenya. He has been a much-loved member of the Childers community for more than 30 years.
The crocodile attack follows a record number of deadly crocodile attacks in the Northern Territory.
In 2014, four people died from a saltwater crocodile mauling them to death in the Top End.
It was the deadliest year since 1974 when records started to be kept.
There were also a significant number of saltwater crocodiles were captured by the NT Parks and Wildlife Commission.
Last year, the crocodile management team removed 287 of the reptiles from the territory's waterways, up from 226 in 2013.
Wildlife ranger Tom Nichols said last year's number was close to toppling the most number of crocodiles ever caught, which is 318 in 2012.
Ian Jenkins, the 58-year-old reptile park owner, was attacked at the Snakes Downunder Reptile Park and Zoo near Childers, south of Bundaberg, on Sunday afternoon in front of a large crowd of mostly families.
Mr Jenkins is 'very, very lucky to be alive' according to paramedics, after the crocodile dragged the reptile enthusiast into the water and attempted to do a 'death roll'.
Paramedics received a call about the incident just before 1pm local time, a Queensland Ambulance Service (QAS) spokesman said.
The zoo's website says the saltwater crocodile feeding and commentary session is held at 12.30pm.
The RACQ Careflight Bundaberg rescue helicopter was also sent to the scene.
Mr Jenkins was attempting to gain the attention of a crocodile by holding a chicken in his right hand when the incident happened, an RACQ Careflight spokesman said.
'He's taken his hat off and was holding his hat in his left hand, when the crocodile jumped up and grabbed his hat and his left hand,' the spokesman told AAP.
'The crocodile has bitten his left hand and amputated his left thumb.'
A section of his left hand was torn down to the wrist
He was airlifted to the Bundaberg Base Hospital in a stable condition. He was administered significant pain relief for his injury.
However, the modest animal-lover supposedly apologised profusely to the paramedics for 'causing such a fuss'.
He also suffered a head injury during the incident, the QAS said.
Ian Jenkins will undergo surgery on Sunday.
This is far from his first serious injury inflicted on the job.
Five years ago, Mr Jenkins survived an eastern brown snake bite, which left him fighting for his life.
He was also bitten by a king brown in 2003 and two black snakes before that.
In January 2010, he was preparing an eastern brown snake for an educational show when he was bitten through a bag, causing the father to collapse and lose consciousness.
The then 51-year-old was transported by air to Bundaberg Base Hospital, placed in intensive care and treated with two doses of anti-venom.
He was back performing his snake show just hours after discharging himself from hospital.
Mr Jenkins previously said that his primary concern is his family and that he hates to cause them distress when he suffers an animal-inflicted injury.
"Its something that I'm not very pleased about, because I don't like to put my family through that sort of worry,' he told ABC in 2010 when asked about his snake bite.
His love of reptiles was born during his childhood in Kenya. He has been a much-loved member of the Childers community for more than 30 years.
The crocodile attack follows a record number of deadly crocodile attacks in the Northern Territory.
In 2014, four people died from a saltwater crocodile mauling them to death in the Top End.
It was the deadliest year since 1974 when records started to be kept.
There were also a significant number of saltwater crocodiles were captured by the NT Parks and Wildlife Commission.
Last year, the crocodile management team removed 287 of the reptiles from the territory's waterways, up from 226 in 2013.
Wildlife ranger Tom Nichols said last year's number was close to toppling the most number of crocodiles ever caught, which is 318 in 2012.
Source : DailyMail , 9News, Skynews
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