A woman who waded through crocodile infested waters in Darwin had to be airlifted to hospital after she was bitten by a fly.
Zerena Di-Prima and her husband Allan were fishing in Leaders Creek in the Top End around six weeks ago, when Zerena was bitten by a March fly.
Speaking to the ABC, the couple said they were forced to walk through the terrifying muddy water after Ms Di-Prima suffered a severe allergic reaction to the insect bite.
Zerena Di-Prima was fishing in Leaders Creek in Darwin around six weeks ago, when she suffered a severe allergic reaction to a March fly bite and was airlifted from the area
Ms Di-Prima and her husband were forced to wade through crocodile-infested waters to be airlifted to hospital
Ms Di-Prima said she has been bitten by March flies (pictured) before, but never suffered a reaction this severe
‘I had a bad bite on my toe and it was really hurting, like more than usual,’ Ms Di-Prima said.
‘My whole body started to come up with hives and a rash. I started freaking out a little bit, my sight started to go in and out.’
Mr Di-Prima tried to bring his wife back to consciousness by pouring cold water over her, before she started convulsing and becoming floppy.
The couple were fishing from their boat in the waters but had become marooned during low tide.
Once the couple reached the boat ramp, Mr Di-Prima raised the alarm and a Careflight helicopter arrived to airlift the couple to hospital (pictured)
The couple were fishing from their boat in the waters but had become marooned during low tide
Mr Di-Prima had to jump out of the boat to push them towards the boat ramp, some 700 metres away.
The crocodile-infested waters were at the back of Mr Di-Prima’s mind as the mud came up to his knees, but he was in ‘survival mode’.
Ms Di-Prima came to ‘out of nowhere’ and the couple were soon wading through mangrove waters together, Mr Di-Prima carrying his wife.
Once at the boat ramp, Mr Di-Prima raised the alarm and a Careflight helicopter arrived to airlift the couple to hospital.
Leaders Creek (pictured) in the Northern Territory is known for its crocodile-infested waters
While not deterred from future fishing trips, the couple will be better prepared for their next one
Ms Di-Prima was still drifting out of consciousness but once at Royal Darwin Hospital, doctors said she had suffered an extreme anaphylactic reaction.
‘Before that, I had started getting big welts coming up every time I was bitten, and they just think it built up and my system was like “nup”,’ Ms Di-Prima said.
While not deterred from future fishing trips, the couple will be better prepared for their next one.
They warned others to take an Epipen in case of allergic reactions, plenty of water and all of the necessary safety equipment, as well as a fishing buddy.