14-year-old boy mauled by crocodile while fishing in waist-deep water

A 14-year-old boy is recovering in hospital after being attacked by a crocodile in Australia.

On Saturday, October 25, the teenager was mauled by the animal at around 3.50pm at Myall Beach in Queensland, according to Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) (ABC), Sky News Australia and British newspaper The Guardian. The latter reported that the boy had been fishing in thigh-high water before the attack, citing a spokesperson for the Department of the Environment, Tourism, Science and Innovation (DETSI).

A Queensland Ambulance Service spokesman said the teenager suffered injuries to his torso and leg, according to the ABC.

After the incident, the boy was taken to the nearby accommodation in PK’s Jungle Village, where nurses and locals administered first aid, manager Harry Hartley told the outlet.

“People came out of the rainforest to help,” he said. “The Cape community came together.”

The teenager was then airlifted to Cairns Hospital and is in a stable condition, a Cairns and Hinterland Hospital and Health Service spokesperson told Sky News Australia.

The boy was waist fishing with two other people when the incident occurred, according to Sky News Australia, citing local store Cairns Post.

In an email to PEOPLE, PK’s Jungle Village residents confirmed that bystanders and locals who witnessed the incident carried the boy from the beach to their property, where he received first aid and care from staff.

“He was in our care until an ambulance could arrive,” the spokesperson said. “His 14-year-old friend was also taken into care who was in the water with him at the time of the incident.”

“All the staff did a fantastic job looking after him,” they continued. “PKs is the heart of Cape Tribulation and one of the first to be built in Cape Tribulation. Normally we entertain locals, tourists, families, adventure travelers and caravanners and campers. On this occasion (it) was a bit different.”

“The young lad was very lucky that it happened on the beach and very close to PK’s beachfront property. There is a boardwalk that links the beach directly to PK’s so it wasn’t far.”

Officers from DETSI began searching for crocodiles after the incident, but found no sightings, per The Guardian.

A department spokesperson confirmed to the outlet that the teenager’s wounds were “consistent with a crocodile attack.”

The Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service is still investigating the incident, according to the ABC.

PEOPLE has contacted the Queensland Ambulance Service, Cairns Hospital, PKs Jungle Village and the Department of the Environment, Tourism, Science and Innovation for comment.

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Four crocodiles have been seen in Cape Tribulation so far this month, with a sighting on Wednesday being investigated.

“Our thoughts go out to the young person who has been affected,” Queensland Tourism Industry Council chief executive Natassia Wheeler told The Guardian.