There have been numerous shocking stories about people and reptiles in Indonesia coming into conflict over the last few years, usually involving the scaly creatures attacking and sometimes devouring humans whole. An 11-year-old boy from a village in Jambi on the island of Sumatra almost became the recently almost became the victim of a hungry crocodile, but his mother’s fearless actions saved his life.
The incident took place in Teluk Dawan Village, located in Jami’s East Tanjungjabung district, on Saturday night. The boy, named Yadi Putra, had gone to the river near his house to fetch some water. Suddenly, a crocodile leaped out of the river and bit down on his left hand and used it to drag the boy into the water.
Yadi let out a cry that was immediately heardy by his 37-year-old mother, Rasmi, who was still in the house. She immediately ran to the river, where she estimated that her son had already been dragged far out into the water by the crocodile.
“I just dove into the river to snatch my son from the crocodile’s bite, and after I swam toward it the crocodile let go and ran away. I did not care if there was another crocodile who might attack me all of a sudden, I was focused on saving my my son who had already been dragged as far as 15 meters,” Rasmi said on Sunday, as quoted by Detik, while talking to reporters at the hospital where her son was taken after she had rescued him.
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Yadi is still in the hospital recovering from the attack, having suffered injuries over his whole body but especially to his left hand where the crocodile bit him.
The head of Jambi’s Natural Resources Conservation Agency (BKSDA) said that his organization has sent a team down to the river to try and find the crocodile so that it can be captured and moved to a location far from humans. He asked that the village’s residents remain calm while they carried out the search.
Some environmentalists believe that the rise in reptile attacks in Indonesia is largely due to extensive deforestation and environmental degradation that is forcing many animals out of their natural habitats and putting them in conflict with humans who are taking over their territory.
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