CANBERRA—An Australian member of parliament (MP) has blamed a fatal crocodile attack on human error, saying it was “stupid” for anyone to swim at night in far north Queensland.
“You can’t legislate against human stupidity. This is a tragedy but it was avoidable. There are warning signs everywhere up there,” said Warren Entsch, a Liberal Party MP for the northern Queensland electorate of Leichardt.
His controversial comments on Monday morning came after a crocodile attacked a 46-year-old woman at approximately 10:30 p.m. on Sunday night while she was swimming in waist deep water in far north Queensland.
The victim of the attack was swimming with a friend at Thornton beach, 40 km north of the Daintree River, a popular area for croc-spotting tours.
“You can only get there by ferry, and there are signs there saying watch out for the bloody crocodiles. If you go in swimming at 10 o’clock at night, you’re going to get consumed.”
Entsch expressed fears that the attack would lead to a “vendetta” against crocodiles which could be detrimental to the area’s economy.
“Let’s not start vendettas. It’s hard enough for some families to make a quid up there in the Daintree showcasing crocs in their environment. People have to have some level of responsibility for their own actions,” he said.