A man has had a close call after he fought off a crocodile in Cairns.

The 44-year-old was swimming at a lake in Caravonica when he felt the crocodile’s mouth on his head.

He pried open its mouth and swam back to land, before he called for help.

Paul Sweeney from the Queensland Ambulance Service says he had minor puncture wounds on his scalp, jaw and shoulder.

“The animal has bitten the top of his head with jaws either side.”

#Caravonica – One patient was transported to Cairns Hospital in a stable condition after sustaining multiple minor lacerations, reportedly from a crocodile off Lake Placid Road at 12.43pm.

— Queensland Ambulance (@QldAmbulance) January 28, 2021

He’s been taken to Cairns Hospital in a stable condition, where the wounds are being cleaned and stitched up.

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