Unbelievable but true.

You know what its like, the phone rings and someone says fancy diving, but today I said no thanks not in the mood.

What a week, the weather has been the number one topic in Australia and probably most of you European based people have seen the news coming out of South Australia with the massive fires that are raging across the state, what has been a little overshadowed is the flooding in North Queensland which in its way has been as devastating as the fires but luckily without the loss of life.

But a story that has struck me deeply this week is the death of a 5 year old boy.

The Daintree River like a lot of others in Northern Queensland burst its banks and the flood waters have been causing havoc with the local community’s. Well imagine the banks of your local river overflowing up to 50 metres from its origin, across the grassy banks where you would normally have a barbecue. Well Jeremy (5) and Ryan Doble (7) were walking along the extended river bank walking there Christmas puppy boxer and watching their father in his dingy, when a 4mtr Crocodile came crashing out of the water and started after the puppy, but 5 year old Jeremy jumped in to shoo the Croc away and by doing so he was taken by the Croc and has not been seen again. His brother 7 year old Ryan’s screams were heard by his father and he leapt into the water but was too late to do anything.

The local Rangers believe that a giant Saltwater Croc called Yellowtail is the culprit and traps have been set up to try and catch the culprit. And guess what the family do not want Yellowtail made into a handbag they just want an x-ray taken to see if any human remains can be seen.

The tidal river which extends 27kms has experts believe 100 mature adult Crocs in its length and many locals are asking for an “old fashioned doubled barrelled croc hunt”. Another local said “You can’t turn your back on the bloody river”

And where the river joins the sea is only 50kms from a popular diving area of Port Douglas.

In the next few days I am diving in our local boatyard marina earning a few bucks to pay for a couple of beers. It’s a very taxing dive to 3metres maximum but visibility is rarely above 18inches. The guy who owns the yacht an ex diver asked me if I had a Shark Shield and said that it would be very advisable to get one. I spoke to a friend who was staggered that I did not own one, and when I told him what I was about to do he begged me not to entertain it without one, he went onto explain that the marina was plagued with Bull Sharks and some that have been witnessed were of sufficient size to do a great deal of harm.

Its very thought provoking thinking not much will happen in a few feet of water but after the incident in Northern Queensland and being told about the problems within the marina, when the phone rang I declined to dive and am now saving a considerable amount of money for my Shark Shield, which of course will be the topic of another story.

So to all you divers out there please stay safe whether you are down at 50metres or two, check up on the local conditions and always get advice from the local dive shop about the area, you just never know what’s about.
At the time of writing this story the TV has been on in the background and to my amazement two stories out of Sydney caught my ear. One, a Navy diver in Sydney harbour was attacked by a Bull Shark and has lost a hand and the hospital was worried his leg may have to be amputated. Two, a surfer on Bondi Beach was attacked by a shark and has also lost a hand and other serious injuries. Just to put Bondi Beach in perspective, it’s what you would call a city beach and surprisingly small but on holiday weekends up to 40,000 people go there. Ten minutes after the attack the sea was full of people again, crazy or what.

So almost $800 for the Shark Shield, I just hope it works! I am meeting with a Shark expert this weekend and I will be intrigued to get his opinion on the Shark Shield system and his thoughts on the amount of attacks happening at present, so watch this site for the most up to date happenings from down under