Roman Butchaski, Cape York: Friends reveal the two grim signs of hope for missing 2GB radio host and fishing expert who vanished in croc-infested waters in far north Queensland – despite police calling off a week-long search

Friends hope former radio host Roman Butchaski is still alive after experts found no sign he had been eaten by crocodiles since he disappeared in treacherous wetlands more than a week ago.

Butchaski, 76, disappeared on November 12 while fishing on the crocodile-infested banks of the remote Olive River, 600 kilometers north of Cairns, at the tip of Cape York.

Rescue crews found his vehicle, one of his two fishing rods and some personal belongings, but no trace of the veteran fisherman.

Now experts from the ‘croc crew’ called in by police to join the hunt have said there is no evidence to suggest ‘Butch’ was attacked by a crocodile.

Extensive searches of the area where he left his buggy found none of the usual tell-tale signs such as a greasy residue on the surface of the water or a stench nearby.

“They didn’t find anything,” Michael Guest, Butch’s former radio presenter and fishing expert, told Ny Breaking Australia. “So that’s a good sign.”

Police, working with the SES, called off a major air and sea search on Sunday after a week-long hunt failed to find the experienced fisherman.

“There are a few possibilities,” Gast said. ‘He may be wandering out there lost and living off the fresh water and fish – he still has his other fishing rod with him.

“They didn’t find any of the other things he took with him when he left the buggy, like that other fishing rod and his water bottle and the sandwiches he was carrying.

‘I’m a fishing professional like him and I’d certainly take both rods if I was going for a proper walk, but if I was just poking around I’d go light with one rod.

‘He could easily have gotten lost and not found his way back.

“Maybe he had a medical episode, or was bitten by a snake, or just took the adventurous side a little too far.

‘There are other waterholes where many estuarine crocodiles live, so it could still be a crocodile attack somewhere else if it wanders off.’

Guest said the area where Butch disappeared is huge and that Bramwell Station, where he left, alone covers 300,000 hectares, the size of almost all of Greater London.

Much of the land is obscured by a canopy of trees, making aerial searches even more difficult, while ground searches on foot are hampered by the winding waterways and crocodiles.

“It’s the wild – and people who’ve never been there probably don’t really understand it,” Guest added.

“If he’s in the shade of a tree or something, whether he’s unconscious, alive, dead, whatever, you could easily fly over him and you’d miss him.

“It looks like a horseshoe-shaped creek and there are little waterholes and other tributaries that flow off of it – so it’s a very easy place to get lost.”

He said even the station manager, Daniel Buhmann, who helped coordinate the search, feared he had become lost at some point during the rescue mission.

Ukrainian-born Butchaski, from Sydney, had been to the area at least four times before, Guest said, so he knew the dangerous river and its dangers.

His brother Oleh Butchatsky flew from Sydney to assist in the hunt and hopes to convince the military to mount its own search using the resources of the 51st FNQ Regiment in Cairns.

Guest said Butch, who was unmarried and trained as a chemical engineer, was a generous man who often met listeners and helped them with their fishing.

“He’s a very social guy, easy to talk to and very giving,” he said. ‘Very knowledgeable. I have known him for sixteen years and worked with him for ten years.

‘For a 76-year-old, he would put many people in their 50s to shame; he still kayaks and fishes a lot.”

But Gast admitted it looked ominous if Butch walked out of the jungle alive.

“I don’t think it’s a worry for him now,” he admitted. “It would be the best story ever if we could find it somewhere now.

‘I would really like that, but I’m really worried now. The longer the days go by… He’s a smart guy. He knows how to find a spot in an open area and just lie down so he can be seen.

‘That’s what worries me: he’s either unable to find a place where anyone can see him, or he’s unable to move at all.

‘It is the not knowing that is torture. It’s certainly not a nice feeling. I’d love to see him walk out of the woods, but with each passing day, that’s a harder ask.

‘I’m not sure how it’s all going to end, but I’m afraid it won’t end very well. It doesn’t look good.’

Butchaski – who co-hosted 2GB’s fishing show with Guest and Gavin Pitchford – also suffers from diabetes and may have suffered a medical episode while alone in the bush.

Fishing buddy Pitchford said Butchaksi was a regular on the river, which gives hope he will still arrive safely.

“I’m devastated,” he said last week. ‘Butchy regularly walks along the banks there. He’s been fishing there forever.”

The remote Olive River runs for 70 kilometers at the top of Australia’s northern mainland, starting in the Richardson Range before heading towards the pristine coast.

The green-hued water meanders through 43 square kilometers of uninhabited, crocodile-infested estuarine wetlands before crossing pristine white sands to meet the Coral Sea at Temple Bay.

Police said the area was particularly difficult to search due to the dense bush and the threat of crocodile attacks on rescue crews.

“It’s certainly a risk to all of our searchers and our emergency responders,” Senior Sergeant Duane Amos said last week.

‘[Butchaski] had gone to that location before. He is an avid fisherman, so it is expected that anyone fishing in these areas will take all reasonable precautions in and around those waterways.

‘In any case, he was well prepared for a normal expedition that he has apparently undertaken before.

‘When he did not return at last light, the first search was started by family and friends.

‘During the preliminary investigation, the vehicle in which the gentleman had gone to the location was found.’

2GB radio host Ben Fordham said last week that the thoughts and prayers of everyone at the radio station were with Butchaksi and his family.

He added, “Obviously we’re thinking of everyone who knew and Butch, and we hope he’s out there somewhere.”

Queensland Police confirmed the search was called off on Sunday and said a further update would be provided on Wednesday morning.

Ny Breaking Australia has contacted the Australian Defense Force for comment.