Local residents reported that Laupa, 52, might have been snatched by a crocodile while fishing at the river, Head of the Operational Affairs Unit at the Search and Rescue (SAR) Agency-Tarakan Office Dede Hariana said.
He, however, could not yet confirm whether or not Laupa's missing was definitely caused by a crocodile attack, he said in a statement that ANTARA quoted here Sunday.
Hariana said the SAR agency received the report of the missing fisherman on Saturday. To follow up on the report, a team of rescuers were then deployed to the river where Laupa went fishing.
"The team of personnel departed to the reported location, which is about 23.31 nautical miles away from the SAR agency's office, at around 11:55 a.m. local time on Saturday," he said.
ANTARA reported earlier that two local residents were recently snatched by crocodlies. They were identified as Samsul, 45, and Baharuddin, 29.
Samsul, a fisher, was reported to have been attacked by an alligator while fishing at Pangkalan Adimitra River in Tabur Lestari Village, Simenggaris Sub-district, on July 22.
Meanwhile, Baharuddin died of a crocodile attack after falling into Tabur Lestari River in Simenggaris Sub-district, on July 18. His body parts were found inside the animal's stomach.
The crocodile attacks have frequently occurred in different parts of Kalimantan.
In 2020, the Central Kalimantan Natural Resources Conservation Agency (BKSDA), for instance, recorded 11 crocodile attacks in different rivers around East Kotawaringin District.
However, the attacks did not result in any fatality. In the first half of 2020, four crocodile attacks were reported in Handil Sohor Village, Commander of the agency's Sampit Post, Muriansyah, revealed.
Two victims survived the attacks, while two others sustained injuries. On September 27, 2020, two more crocodile attacks took place in the estuary of Lampuyang village's river.
Two locals survived the attacks, though they sustained injuries. They were attacked while they were hunting for oysters in the river while another local resident was also snatched by a crocodile in the same river on October 25, 2020. The victim suffered wounds on arms and legs.
In December, 2020, two more crocodile attacks were reported in the district. The attacks left two people injured, according to the BKSDA.
On December 17, 2020, an alligator snatched a resident of Bagendang Hulu village who was bathing in the river at night.
On December 30, 2020, a child from Ganepo village in Seranau subdistrict was also attacked by a crocodile while bathing in the Hambawang River in the morning.
According to the agency, the crocodile attacks may be related to the scarcity of food sources in their natural habitat around the district's forests.
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Translator: Susi A, Rahmad Nasution
Editor: Sri Haryati
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