Asylum seekers: Illegal immigrants still on run in Daintree Rainforest

AS authorities close in on the remaining illegal immigrants hiding in dense Daintree rainforest, a local fisherman is gaining fame after engaging in a spot of mud crabbing with two of them before taking them to shore where they were detained by police.

AS authorities close in on the suspected illegal immigrants hiding in dense Daintree rainforest, with 15 now detained, a local fisherman is gaining fame after being snapped with two of the wanted men.

Wonga Beach anglers Barry Preston and Justin Ward had been fishing near the mouth of the river on Sunday afternoon, when they were waved down by the men standing on the muddy bank on the northern side of the crocodile-infested waterway.

The men, who identified themselves as Vietnamese, had fled south through the mangroves after their fishing vessel ran aground at Cape Kimberley, 25km north of Port Douglas, just hours earlier.

The photo, circulating on social media as a candidate for the “Aussie of the Day” award, shows Mr Preston, with two men who police say have now been detained. “Aussie award for the day goes to this champ right here,” the caption says. “Good old Barry here picked up some asylum seekers in the mangroves this afternoon. And instead of hooking it into the boat ramp to call the authorities. He takes them crabbing. Gold... Nice work Barry.”

A local Daintree crab fisherman, named only as Barry, reportedly with two of the Vietnamese boat people in his dinghy.

After ensuring the men were safe and did not require any urgent medical attention, the fishermen contacted the police, arranging to meet them at the Wonga Beach boat ramp.

Mr Preston told The Cairns Post he and Mr Ward, during their three-hour return trip to Snapper Island, had spied the rickety-looking boat close to shore and a plane circling overhead, but initially thought nothing of it.

“We did a U-turn, went over there, and when we saw them, we finally pieced it all together and thought ‘oh right — these are refugees’,” he said.

“We just thought this was amazing that their boat had gotten so far down (the coast) and it was undetected.”

Mr Preston feared the asylum seekers would be taken by crocs, if they had tried to swim to freedom, so took them on-board his boat.

“We thought they were going swim to the other side (of the river), because that would have been the home stretch,” he said.

“When they got in the boat, and we were going up South Arm, there was a croc on the bank and we pointed it out and they said ‘oh geez’ — it probably a 14-footer (4.2m).

“So, lucky they didn’t make a dash for it.”

Justin Ward sharing a beer and a cigarette with an asylum seeker, believed to be from Vietnam, rescued from mangroves in the Daintree River.

On the way, the asylum seekers — who appeared to be brothers — helped the fishers check mud crab traps, and happily posed for photos.

“It was probably the best hour the refugees had, on the tour of my boat up South Arm,” Mr Preston said.

“We gave them water, smokes, caught crabs, and saw crocodiles.”

Elsewhere, tourists Ryan Michel, 25, and Michelle Garrido, 22, were stunned to find themselves in the middle of a manhunt.

“It’s the closest I’ve ever been to an asylum seeker situation,” Ms Garrido, on the beach at Cape Kimberley, said.

“I’m shocked they came this far, something like 8500km from Vietnam, and wound up here.

“I’m worried for them. They’ve taken the risk to leave their own country, and take such a risk to land (in) such dangerous territory, this place is full of crocodiles.

“But they’ve also left a huge mess with all the oil and diesel spilt into the water from the sunken trawler.

“It’s going to take a massive cleanup.”

Workers attempt to stem the flow of diesel from a Vietnamese fishing boat, which sank off Cape Kimberley in North Queensland full of asylum seekers. Picture: Marc McCormack

The site where the Vietnamese boat people ran off the beach is made up of mangrove swamp and fruit plantations but mostly dense tropical rainforest.

It is almost impossible to hike through the area without getting hooked up in thick, thorn-covered vines, known as wait-a-while or lawyer vine.

There is only one dirt road in and out of the beach.

The creek-lines that flow off the steep ridge-line of Cape Kimberley are visibly ploughed up and rutted by feral pigs which infest the area.

The Daintree River has one the highest densities of large crocodiles on the Australian east coast and it is also home to cassowaries and snakes.

Local fisherman Mark “Scrubber” Harris, who helped tow the stricken vessel to deeper water, predicts those still on the run won’t last long.

“It is unforgiving terrain,” he said.

“If the sand flies and mosquitoes don’t eat them alive, there is a good chance the crocodiles will.

“Hide out in that scrub for a few days, and they’ll be begging to be taken home.”