Australian child feared missing after crocodile attack

A desperate search is underway in northern Australia for a boy believed to have been abducted by a crocodile.

The 12-year-old was last seen at dusk on Tuesday, swimming near the remote town of Palumpa, about a seven-hour drive southwest of Darwin in the Northern Territory (NT).

Police said a specialist search and rescue team was deployed after “initial reports indicated the child had been attacked by a crocodile”.

The Northern Territory is home to about 100,000 saltwater crocodiles, more than anywhere else in the world, but attacks are rare.

Members of the Palumpa community – which numbers just 364 people – and local police began searching for the child immediately after she went missing in Mango Creek at around 5:30pm local time (0800 GMT).

They have now been joined by additional officers and the search and rescue team who are combing the land and water for signs of the boy.

Aerial searches could also be launched, according to local media.

“Officers are currently searching a large portion of the creek by boat and we are grateful [the] “Thank you to the community for their continued support,” Staff Sergeant Erica Gibson said in a statement.

“Local police are on scene and our thoughts are with the family and the community.”