07:14 EST 6 December 2012
A young woman ripped from the jaws of a deadly crocodile has spoken of her miraculous recovery following the horrific ordeal.
Pretty Tara Hawkes was grabbed by the monster croc while paddling with friends in a freshwater pool near Dugong Bay, in the north of Western Australia.
The 23-year-old had been working aboard luxury cruiser, True North, on April Fool’s Day this year, when she decided to cool off in the water.
Wounds: The cuts were so deep the pool ran red and Tara feared she would lose her leg (left). She was airlifted to hospital in the cruise ship’s helicopter (right)
What should have been a relaxing dip soon turned into a nightmare for the hostess when she felt the crocodile grab her left leg with excruciating force.
Tara, from Vasse in Western Australia, said she realised immediately what had happened.
She said: ‘I felt this impact on my leg and I was pulled under water. Straight away I knew it was a crocodile.
‘I managed to get my head up and scream ‘croc’ and then this giant dragged me under again. He was playing with me like I was a teddy bear.
‘I got my head above water again and this time I was swearing and saying get this thing off me. I was just screaming for help.
‘I couldn’t feel any pain but I could see his teeth sinking into my leg.
‘I thought I was going to die. I could only see about four centimetres of the top of my leg and the rest was in the croc’s gob.’
Beast: Saltwater crocodiles usually wait for their prey to get close to the water’s edge before striking and use their incredible strength to drag them into the water
Brave: Tara with ‘Big Al’, her friend and the man who tackled a vicious crocodile with his bare hands to save her life
Tara’s friend and colleague, Al Sartori, was watching on from the shore and thought Tara was playing an April Fools prank.
However, the 35-year-old, who had checked the 3x5m pool for danger beforehand, soon realised it was no joke when Tara continued to scream and the water filled with blood.
Al, who is known as Big Al, stepped in to help Tara and with the help of bystander, Mike Fletcher, wrestled the giant three-metre crocodile.
Al prised open its colossal jaws until Tara was eventually freed.
Rescue: Tara tied a t-shirt around her wound and was airlifted to hospital on the luxury vessel’s helicopter
He said: ‘It was April Fools day and for a moment I thought Tara was winding us up.
‘However soon I saw the crocodile on top of her. I jumped into the water and on to its back and stuck my thumbs into its eyes until I felt it start to slacken off.
‘Tara was bleeding pretty heavily. I picked up the croc and chucked it back into the water and it came back at me. It was pretty heavy.
‘I wouldn’t ever want to do it again. I’m just glad I took the chance to try and save her.’
Brave: Tara suffers panic attacks from her ordeal but recently came face-to-face with a croc to confront her fears and made her peace with the reptiles
Tara added: ‘It was a massive crocodile and Alan had his fingers in its mouth, trying to open it.
‘But crocodiles have lockjaw and even if you’re the strongest man in the world you could not pull a crocodile’s mouth apart.
‘My leg was in the air and I was punching the croc on the nose but I was powerless to do anything.
‘I looked at Alan and realised my life was in his hands and there was nothing I could do but stay strong.’
After realising the true horror of what was happening, videographer Mike Fletcher jumped into the pool and held Tara’s head above water just as the crocodile prepared for a death roll.
Tara said: ‘Al stuck his thumbs back deeper into its eyes and it released its grip a little bit and I managed to get my leg out with the help of Mike.
‘I looked at my leg and it had been ripped to pieces. I thought I had a chance of losing my leg at that stage.’
Tara bravely wrapped a t-shirt and some towels around her mangled leg to try and suppress the bleeding.
Alan and Mike then put Tara in a dinghy and they sped back to True North where the crew were waiting anxiously.
Tara was airlifted to a hospital where surgeons spent the next four hours desperately trying to piece her leg back together.
Both Big Al and Mark have since won awards for their selfless acts from the Royal Life Saving Society’s Western Power Bravery Awards.
Meanwhile, despite still suffering panic attacks, Tara has made a miraculous recovery after undergoing seven months of intense physiotherapy and treatment for Post Traumatic Stress.
Brave Tara even recently visited crew on True North and confronted her fears at a wildlife park where she came face-to-face with a crocodile.
She said: ‘Seeing that croc I thought it was actually a beautiful creature. I wanted to pat him.
‘I owe Al my life. I don’t know how to thank him enough.
‘I still think I must have had someone looking over me that day, my pop or my nanna or someone close to me who was looking after me.
‘But maybe that’s just the way life is and I was just the luckiest girl in the world.’
Dugong Bay is a popular beauty spot in Western Australia
True North, the luxury cruise boat Tara was working on in Dugong Bay in Western Australia
Scenery: Dugong Bay is a magnificent natural harbour popular with holidaymakers
Mr Peter Carstairs, from Western Australia’s Department of the Environment and Conservation, said Miss Hawkes was taking a swim in a fresh water pool in an area known for crocodiles.
‘It was not far from the salt water area and as she was exiting the water she was grabbed by a crocodile,’ said Mr Carstairs.
‘She received lacerations and puncture wounds from the attack.’ He said the crocodile was still in the area and he urged others not to swim there.
‘That area’s very well known for crocodiles, so I think removing people from the environment instead of removing the crocodile from the environment sounds like a good idea.’
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using the number/letter grid:
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
A B C D E F G H I
J K L M N O P Q R
S T U V W X Y Z
Where:
A = 1 J = 1 S = 1
B = 2 K = 2 T = 2
C = 3 L = 3 U = 3
D = 4 M = 4 V = 4
E = 5 N = 5 W = 5
F = 6 O = 6 X = 6
G = 7 P = 7 Y = 7
H = 8 Q = 8 Z = 8
I = 9 R = 9
Tara Hawkes
2 8
her primary challenge = TH = 28 = Survivor.
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https://www.createspace.com/3802937
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numerology for Friday December 21st, 2012 (the “end of the Mayan calendar”) at:
http://2012numerology.wordpress.com/
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comprehensive summary and list of predictions for 2012:
http://predictionsyear2012.com/
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predictions for the year 2013 are at:
numerology behind the news 