Three British backpackers have been rescued from rising floodwaters in Australia after waking up to find they had parked their campervan in a crocodile warning area.
The group were found on the roof of the vehicle, painted to look like the cartoon van from Scooby Doo, when emergency services arrived at the scene off Bruce highway south of Cairns, Queensland, on Tuesday morning.
Three men, aged in their 20s, were spotted on the roof of the van, just metres from a sign warning of the presence of crocodiles.
Three British backpackers were rescued from the roof of their vehicle (pictured) off a highway south of Cairns, Queensland, on Tuesday morning
The group were found on the roof of the vehicle, painted to look like the cartoon van from Scooby Doo, when emergency services arrived at the scene
A spokesman for Queensland Fire and Emergency Services (QFES) said the group had parked at a camping ground on Monday evening.
‘We received a call at about 6am this morning to reports of three backpackers stranded due to flood water just off the Bruce Highway at Gordonvale,’ he said.
‘The backpackers said the area was a crocodile notice area and they were concerned.’
The state’s waterways are home to saltwater crocodiles, the largest species of the fearsome reptiles that are known to occasionally prey on humans.
‘When we were called the water was just above the wheels,’ the spokesman said.
‘There are signs in the area warning people of the crocodiles and as they were on the phone the water continued to rise.
‘It got up to around three quarters of the vehicle and they got onto the roof.’
An inflatable raft was deployed to bring the hapless backpackers back to dry land where they were assessed by paramedics
QFES officer Guy Bulmer, who was first on the scene, said the warning signs were there for a reason.
‘During the night and the course of the evening they noticed water entering the campervan and there was a croc sign quite close by,’ he said.
‘The signs are not there for general information. It’s quite specific, there are crocodiles there.
‘They went to the roof of the van and it’s not until they were seen this morning that someone saw them there – they had no shirts on either.’
QFES water rescue teams, along with paramedics and police, raced to the scene and arrived to find the water had risen considerably since the alarm was raised.
‘We had people on watch assisted by the police in case any crocs did turn up,’ Mr Bulmer said.
The group were camped at this Gordonvale camping ground when emergency services arrived at the scene
‘They look like logs so they are hard to spot, but they are quite shy and we were making a lot of noise.
‘I wouldn’t have been surprised if they were around though.
‘You’ve also got debris in the water, it’s extremely dirty, so there is plenty of potential for injury and death.’
An inflatable raft was deployed to bring the hapless backpackers back to dry land where they were assessed by paramedics.
None of the group is thought to have suffered any injuries and were glad to be out of the water.
‘After we got them back to dry land they were certainly grateful,’ Mr Bulmer said.
‘They had a cold and wet night. They got warmed up and it was happy days because no-one got hurt.
‘It can happen to anyone, and tourists don’t have the local knowledge.’
‘The backpackers said the area was a crocodile notice area and they were concerned,’ an emergency services spokesman said (stock image)
Mr Bulmer said the men ‘did the right thing’ by staying put, rather than attempting to swim to safety.
‘The worst case scenario would have been if they thought “let’s give it a go and swim” which would have been a potential life or death situation.
‘You don’t know what’s in the water. Crocs, logs, debris.’
The men are understood to have been reunited with their possessions and flown out of Cairns on Tuesday on a scheduled flight.
Between the alarm being raised and the group all being rescued took around 45 minutes.
The van was later removed from the floodwaters, which have devastated the region.