Brave Oz father reveals how he fought off croc attack in waterhole

Melbourne, Feb 13 (ANI): A brave father in Australia has opened up about an incident when he fought for his life with a 3m crocodile that dragged him under at a north Queensland waterhole.

Weipa miner Eddie Sigai said he desperately kicked, punched and gouged the crocodile after it latched on to his left hand as he swam with his daughters Jennifer, 17, and Monica, 12, at Beening Creek last Saturday.

"I thought to myself, this is it, I am dead," News.com.au quoted the 37-year-old as telling The Sunday Mail.

"But it's surprising what you can do when all you can think about is the safety of your children.

"It grabbed my hand and pulled me under the water so I was sitting and all I can remember is grabbing it, shaking it, punching it and going for its eyes," he said.

The family had been swimming at the waterhole for about three hours before the attack.

Sigai, who has been swimming in the creek since he was a child, recalls watching a documentary a few years ago about another man who survived a crocodile attack by gouging at its eyes.

He said the tactic stuck with him and was probably responsible for saving his life.

He spent two days in hospital with bite marks on his left hand and deep scratch marks down his back. (ANI)