TUARAN: Coastal villagers fear for their safety after a saltwater crocodile made an appearance at Kampung Serusup here, last night, believed to be hunting for food.
The three-metre long reptile was believed to have emerged from the sea after it noticed the presence of chickens by the beach.
In the 9pm event, over 50 villagers, including those from Kampung Tajau, came to witness the reptile, which then started acting in an aggressive manner towards the crowd.
A villager known only as Azrah, 23, said villagers had first spotted the crocodile swimming through the waters, on Friday.
“This is the first time it landed. There are many chickens roaming by the sea and that could have attracted the crocodile’s attention.
“It could have tried to attack (the chickens) but it however returned to the sea before the civil defence team arrived,” said Azrah.
Azrah, who is also a Civil Defence Force personnel, said villagers were now concern with the presence of crocodiles at sea as they often travel back and forth to Kampung Penimbawaan by boat.
Meanwhile, district civil defence officer Paulina Francis said a team was deployed to catch the reptile after being alerted at 9.11pm.
“The team managed to catch a glimpse of it by the beach and tried to capture the crocodile but was unable to do so.
“The reptile was aggressive before it submerged into the sea. It did not resurface,” she said, adding the team carried out surveillance for 30 minutes.
She however reminded villagers not to take actions on their own and to call the Civil Defence Force if they spotted the reptile again.