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Croc victim had head bitten off
From: By Nigel Adlam
October 01, 2005

A MAN killed by a crocodile on Thursday died from a single bite to the head and probably did not feel a thing.

Russell Butel, 55, was probably close to the surface of the water when he was grabbed while diving on the Coburg Peninsula in the Northern Territory.
The sea-cucumber diver suffered a crushed skull and jaw from an animal with biting power of around three tonnes for every two and a half square centimetres. Scientists believe the jaws of saltwater crocodiles are more powerful than the most fearsome dinosaur, tyrannosaurus rex.

A Darwin crocodile expert said Mr Butel was "probably splashing about".

"The croc would have lined him up and gone underwater from 100-200m," the zoologist said.

"The animal may then have surfaced right next to him and attacked. It would have all been over in seconds."

The wildlife ranger who found Mr Butel's body said it was floating about 2km from the attack site.
Peter Fitzgerald said he had seen as many as 12 crocodiles at a time in the bay.

"The locals here are very reluctant to go near the water and are fairly crocodile-aware, which I hope everyone is after such an incident. It's just a sad event," he said.

Mr Butel was one of the Northern Territory's most experienced divers.

He was collecting fish and coral for his aquarium supply business near Vashon Head, north of Darwin, when the crocodile struck.

Colleagues said Mr Butel was a dedicated diver who was influential within the industry.

"He was committed to developing the industry and had worked for it for a long time," aquarium fishery committee chairman Brian Koennecke said.

"Russell will be greatly missed by all of us and everyone involved in diving and fishing in the Territory."

He was the second man to be killed by a crocodile in the Territory in five days.

Mine superintendent Russell Harris, 37, was killed while snorkelling at Groote Eylandt last Sunday.

Mr Butel's wife Loraine was yesterday being comforted by her daughter Michelle.

A friend said she was "traumatised".

Mr Butel's diving partner, Nick Sherwood, who was in a dinghy during the attack, was last night still in shock.

Police said they would not shoot the 4m crocodile.

Divers said Mr Butel was working where there was a high risk of attack.

But friends said he knew the risks and accepted them as an occupational hazard.

Most crocodile attacks occur between late September and January when crocodiles are hungry after the dry season and are preparing to breed.

Rising temperatures and humidity make them more active.

Three recent attacks - two in the Northern Territory and one in north Queensland last month - have sparked calls for a cull of the animals.

http://www.news.com.au/story/0,10117,16773734-17001,00.html

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John aka NitroX

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