NSW man taken by crocodile in Cooktown, Qld

The man was on an interstate holiday with his wife and children when he fell into a river, and is feared to have been taken by a “large” crocodile.

A NSW man remains missing after he was taken in a suspected crocodile attack while with his wife and children on a river bank in Far North Queensland, police have revealed.

The 40-year-old man was fishing with his family at about 2.10pm on Saturday at the river bank on Annan River in Cooktown, about 326kms from Cairns, when he fell into the water and failed to resurface.

At the time, a reportedly large crocodile had been seen in the area.

Senior Sergeant Greg Finucane confirmed the family were tourists from NSW, and issued his condolences to the family.

“(They) are obviously very traumatised at the moment,” he said.

A large crocodile has been seen in the area at Kennedy Bend in Lakeland National Park where a 65-year-old Laura man has vanished and is believed to have been taken by a crocodile. Picture: Supplied

The feared attack has sparked a frantic search involving about five Queensland Police officers, plus 15 personnel from State Emergency Service and Department of Environment, Science and Innovation (DESI) wildlife officers.

Staff had also been brought in from Cairns, with the search also utilising drones and watercraft.

Sergeant Finucane said the search and rescue mission will continue overnight and into the coming days.

The total search area covered about 5kms of challenging terrain including water ways which were affected by tides and the weather.

“The natural common movement and habitat of crocodiles has to be taken into account (as well),” he said.

Authorities are also currently looking at the crocodiles in the area and were determining which ones they may capture.

“(The search will) go into the night, just depending on weather and officer and personnel safety,” Sergeant Finucane added.

Originally published as NSW man taken by crocodile in Cooktown, Qld