Woman pulled from croc's jaws

2008-01-30 09:49

Fanie van Rooyen

Johannesburg - A Pretoria man told how he saw the "yellow eyes in the water" and saved his girlfriend from a crocodile's jaws.

"I just remember how yellow his eyes were when he came out of the water."

Robert Booysen, 35, from Groenkloof in Pretoria described how a crocodile got hold of his girlfriend's arm on a farm in Hoedspruit, Mpumalanga on Christmas Eve.

Jevonne le Roux, 25, said Booysen "without a doubt" saved her life after he pulled her free by her other arm.

Croc teeth broke off

"Four or five" crocodile teeth broke off in Le Roux's arm.

They were walking along the Blyde River and as usual crossed the river over a tree log over the stream. They returned across the same log at about 16:00.

"I was walking in front and held out my arm for balance when the crocodile shot up from the water and grabbed my right arm," said Le Roux.

Booysen saw Le Roux disappear in front of him.

"When I saw it happen, I instinctively grabbed her left arm and pulled her back.

"I could see the sinews, muscle and artery in her arm had been severed: the wound was bleeding profusely.

"I held her wounded arm in my hands and we slowly moved sideways across the log with our backs to the crocodile."

Doctors at the Medi-Clinic in Nelspruit discovered the teeth in her arm after taking X-rays.

"It's a pity I couldn't keep one of the teeth. They were sent to a laboratory for analysis," she said.

"I got an infection in the arm after the first operation. But because of the crocodile teeth the right kind of antibiotics could be prescribed," said Le Roux.

Skin from her leg was grafted on her arm and she could not feel three of her fingers.

The specialist treating her believed she would regain 90% of the use of her hand.

"I'm glad I'm left-handed," she added.

- Beeld