Couple slammed for letting kids play dangerously close to crocodile infested waters in Darwin
A couple has come under fire online after posting a video showing their children playing dangerously close to waters known to be inhabited by saltwater crocodiles.
The footage was taken at the Mangrove Boardwalk, a raised aluminium walkway about 10 minutes from Darwin, which runs directly through crocodile territory.
While the boardwalk is elevated and appears safe, the video shows one of the children standing on the guard rail, leaning over the edge and peering into the water. Viewers were quick to point out the serious risk.
'Wouldn't have your kid hanging over the edge like that, crocodile food,' one person commented.
'Some saltwater crocodiles are capable of leaping up to two meters,' another viewer warned.
'I wouldn't let my children hang over the rails. Have you seen how high crocodiles jump?' added another.
The City of Darwin has previously warned that while the Mangrove Boardwalk is a popular attraction, the wildlife must be respected.
'Any body of water in the Top End, including Darwin Harbour, may contain large and potentially dangerous crocodiles,' a spokesperson said.
'People are advised to be crocwise and adhere to crocwise warnings at all times.'
The boardwalk is designed to accommodate tidal flow, with signs warning that water levels can vary, but that hasn't stopped some visitors from underestimating the risks.
Crocodiles aren't the only threat in the area.
The waters around the boardwalk are also home to the world's most venomous animal, the box jellyfish, which can kill a child in minutes if enough tentacles make contact.
While crocodile attacks in the Northern Territory are relatively rare, they do happen.
Between 1979 and 2022, there were 76 recorded attacks, 30 per cent of them fatal. The region is home to an estimated 100,000 saltwater crocodiles.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Guardian
39 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Closing arguments conclude in Australia's mushroom trial as jury deliberation approaches
Closing addresses from the prosecution and defence have now concluded in the triple murder trial of Erin Patterson. Next it will be up to the jury to deliberate and reach a unanimous verdict. Patterson faces three charges of murder and one charge of attempted murder relating to a lunch she served at her house in Victoria's Leongatha on 29 July 2023. She has pleaded not guilty to murdering three relatives of her estranged husband, Simon Patterson, and attempting to murder another. Guardian Australia's justice and courts reporter, Nino Bucci, has been attending the trial since it began, and explains the latest developments
The Guardian
an hour ago
- The Guardian
NSW political staffers could be arrested after failing to appear at Dural caravan inquiry
A parliamentary committee is seeking warrants for the arrest of five New South Wales government staffers who failed to appear and give evidence to an inquiry examining the Sydney caravan 'fake terrorism plot'. The staffers – three from the office of the premier, Chris Minns, and two who work for the police minister, Yasmin Catley – were summoned to appear before the inquiry on Friday. But they did not show up. The staffers claimed – in a letter to the upper house committee chair, independent MP Rod Roberts – that they had the 'reasonable excuse or just cause' required by law to not appear. The staff members argued they were 'proxies' because Minns and Catley could not, as members of the lower house, be compelled to appear as witnesses. The inquiry – launched with the support of the Coalition, the Greens and crossbench MLCs – is examining the handling of information about the caravan plot amid concerns about whether parliament was 'misled' before controversial laws aimed at curbing antisemitism were rushed through parliament. In January, after it was announced that the caravan had been found in Dural laden with explosives, Minns said it had the potential to be a 'mass casualty event'. But in March, the Australian federal police revealed they believed it was a 'con job' by organised crime figures seeking to divert police resources and influence prosecutions. Minns has said he was briefed early on that the caravan plot 'could be something other than terrorism as it's classically defined and that no line of inquiry was being ruled out by NSW police'. The premier and the police minister refused to appear at the inquiry before the committee sought the appearance of their staffers. Friday's extraordinary decision to seek the arrest warrants could lead to the staffers being apprehended and brought before the committee to give evidence. But several steps have to be completed first. Roberts, the chair, will meet with the president of the Legislative Council, Nationals MP Ben Franklin, on Friday afternoon to submit the committee's case. Under the Parliamentary Evidence Act, if the president is satisfied that the five staffers failed to appear without just cause or reasonable excuse, the matter would be referred to a judge of the supreme court. If the judge agrees, then warrants would be issued and the staffers arrested and brought before the committee to give evidence. 'This decision follows numerous attempts by the committee over several weeks to secure the attendance of these staff by invitation and ultimately by summons,' Roberts said in a statement. The staffers summoned to appear included Minns' chief of staff, James Cullen, and two of his deputy chiefs of staff, Edward Ovadia and Sarah Michael. The police minister's chief of staff, Ross Neilson, was also summoned, along with Catley's deputy chief of staff, Tilly South. The staffers' letter to Roberts, released by the committee, stated: 'Our attendance before the select committee to give evidence would be at odds with the principles of ministerial accountability and comity between the houses of parliament.' Sign up to Afternoon Update Our Australian afternoon update breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters after newsletter promotion They pointed to an outstanding inquiry on parliamentary privilege and ethics, stating they suspected in light 'of recent events' it would consider whether compelling ministerial staff to give evidence infringed parliamentary privilege or 'offends principles' of Australia's Westminster system of government. 'In these circumstances, and particularly while the standing committee's inquiries are ongoing, we consider that there is a reasonable excuse or just cause for us to not attend the hearing, and we propose not to do so,' they wrote on Thursday. 'Given your [Roberts'] comments on breakfast radio yesterday as to the motivation for issuing the summonses, which make it clear we are 'proxies' because our respective ministers cannot be compelled as witnesses to the select committee, we also consider that they have not been properly issued.' The letter noted Ovadia had informed the committee he was on leave during the relevant period. Minns told reporters on Thursday that his staff would not appear. On Friday morning, Roberts conducted a roll call twice to empty chairs set out for the staffers before closing the hearing. Earlier in the week, the premier told 2GB radio he believed the inquiry was based on a 'giant conspiracy' led by his political opponents. Minns said summoning staffers to appear was a 'bid for some kind of relevance' by opponents. Asked if his staffers were prepared to be arrested, Minns said: 'Well, I hope it doesn't get to that. I mean, I think that would be a giant overreach. It's never happened before.' The NSW Liberal leader, Mark Speakman, was asked by reporters on Friday if the move was drastic. 'It is drastic and it's easily avoidable if they do the right thing, obey the law and appear,' he said. Minns and Catley were contacted for comment.
The Guardian
an hour ago
- The Guardian
Former NSW MP Daryl Maguire found guilty of misleading corruption inquiry
Ex-Liberal MP Daryl Maguire has been found guilty of misleading a corruption probe about benefits expected from a $48m property development sale. The former member for Wagga Wagga, whose clandestine relationship with ex-NSW premier Gladys Berejiklian led to her political downfall, appeared at Sydney's Downing Centre Court for the verdict on Friday. Magistrate Clare Farnan found Maguire misled the NSW Independent Commission Against Corruption while giving evidence during a hearing in July 2018. Farnan rejected a bid by Maguire's legal team to suppress the publication of the guilty verdict. 'The interests of the community in open justice is in my view not outweighed by Mr Maguire's interests,' she said. At Icac, Maguire was asked about what he expected to get out of the sale of an estimated $48m property development in Campsie in Sydney's south-west. Icac grilled Maguire and others in 2018 under Operation Dasha, which probed allegations of corruption at the local council. The Wagga Wagga MP resigned from the Berejiklian government after giving evidence, before succumbing to pressure and quitting parliament altogether. Sign up to Morning Mail Our Australian morning briefing breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters after newsletter promotion Icac opened a further probe into Maguire, exposing his secret romantic relationship with Berejiklian in 2020. Berejiklian also stood down from her role and was later found by Icac to have breached public trust in failing to disclose the relationship, spanning at least five years while she was transport minister, treasurer and then premier.
