The body of Sean Cole, a 26-year-old who was killed by a crocodile attack in Australia this weekend, was recovered on Monday morning by authorities.
The Inquisitr reported earlier that Cole was at a birthday party along the Mary River this weekend when he was pulled away by a crocodile. Mary River has the highest density of saltwater crocodiles in the world and rangers said that the group should have known better than to go swimming.
Grahame Webb, a crocodile expert, told UPI that there are plenty of signs in the area warning visitors about the dangers of the river.
Webb said: “They sort of know they shouldn’t swim there, but they let their guard down… Parks and Wildlife put a huge effort now into public education, so because we’ve got a transient population up here it’s really important people learn quickly. I doubt there’s much more you can do.”
Parks and wildlife ranger Tom Nichols said that four crocodiles have been killed since the crocodile attack. Cole said that rangers typically kill any crocodiles in the area after attack because it gives the family a sense of closure.
Cole said : “Any animals that were in that range which we believed to be a possible target in the area where the accident took place, we usually take them out for simple reasons… We do autopsies on those, and it’s also closure for the families if there’s anything there.”
Shaun Kelly, who runs the nearby Bark Hutt Inn, said: “They may have gone for a swim in the Mary River or in a waterhole in the past and gotten away with it, and this time someone hasn’t.”
