Chilling moment kayaker calls for help after his friend is ambushed by a ’15-foot-long’ crocodile
- Hendrik Coetzee, 35, was ripped from his raft by the deadly aquatic predator
- He was accompanied by Chris Korbulic and Ben Stookesberry, both from the US
- The trio were kayaking along the Lukuga River in Congo when disaster struck
This is the horrifying moment a kayaker calls for help after seeing his friend ambushed by a ’15-foot-long’ crocodile.
In 2010, Chris Korbulic and Ben Stookesberry, both from the US, were kayaking on the Lukuga River in the Democratic Republic of Congo when disaster struck.
In a shocking turn of events, fellow kayaker Hendrik Coetzee, 35, was ripped from his raft by the deadly aquatic predator.
Video footage shows one of the pair calling for help as their friend was ambushed by the animal, which locals claimed was ‘five meters long and two tonnes in weight’.
Coetzee, born in South Africa but living in Uganda at the time, led the group of experienced kayakers as part of a mission to document undiscovered whitewater and development projects in the region.
In 2010, Chris Korbulic and Ben Stookesberry, both from the US, were kayaking on the Lukuga River in the Democratic Republic of Congo when disaster struck
After arriving in a nearby village shortly after the attack, Stookesberry radioed for help, saying, “This is Ben, can you hear me?” We had a terrible accident here. Hendri has just been taken by a crocodile’
The Lukuga River is infamous for the high density of crocodiles and hippos that live in the area
Hendrik Coetzee, 35, (pictured) was leading an expedition from the source of the White Nile to Congo when he was attacked
His body was never found and he is presumed dead after the tragic incident.
Korbulic, from Rogue River, Oregon, and Stookesberry, from Mount Shasta, California, had teamed up with Coetzee in an effort to become the first people ever to sail the whitewater of the Lukuga River.
The Lukuga River is notoriously dangerous for its whitewater and risky to navigate due to the number of crocodiles and hippos in the area.
Speaking about the horrific incident in 2010, Korbulic said: ‘The crocodile just pulled him completely under the water. I think we were both in complete shock and disbelief and absolutely shocked at what had just happened.”
The trip’s sponsoring company, Eddie Bauer, said in a statement: “We are saddened by the tragic accident and extend our deepest condolences to Hendri’s family and friends.”
Korbulic linked to the statement on his Facebook page, along with a tribute that read: “My condolences to the family; it is sad for the kayaking community around the world.”
In 2013, the sad story of Coetzee’s death was told in the National Geographic documentary Man-Eater of The Congo.