{WEs note: Audio interview link at URL below}
AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION 03 February 05 Mum not smiling over croc encounter (Reporter: Kim Lester, Presenter: Chris Lawson)
The famous song lyric Never smile at a crocodile rang true for a Central Queensland woman who had a close encounter with a toothy reptile this week.
Katie Williams was swimming at Bangalee Beach on the Capricorn Coast beach with her mother Kerry and partner Wayne Downie when Mr Downie spotted a crocodile in the surf.
Mr Downie called for the pair to run, but they weren’t sure what they running from when the crocodile brushed against Kerry Williams’ leg.
Katie Williams said her mother was petrified.
"When she was running she actually stumbled and then she felt a nudge in the leg and I just thought oh no it’s all over now," she said.
"Then she turned around and it had its’ mouth open, and she just ran that fast up on the bank."
Ms Williams said a crocodile was the last thing she expected to see in the surf.
"When we got up on the bank none of us could believe it," she said.
"I thought I’d see a shark there before I saw a crocodile."
John Lever from Koorana Crocodile Farm said it was unlikely the two metre saltwater crocodile would have attacked them.
"If you accidentally encounter one, both of you are going to get a fright, it’d be a horrible encounter," he said.
Mr Lever suspected the crocodile found its’ way into the ocean as a result of unusually high tides.
Mum not smiling over croc encounter
