A Bay and the nearby breaks have long been a favourite for travelling British surfers
A British surfer has been killed by a crocodile at Elephant Rock during a surf trip at Arugam Bay, Sri Lanka.
Paul McClean, 25, from Surrey was taken after washing his hands in the river behind the break. A fisherman saw the incident and raised the alarm. A body has been found.
McClean, who worked as a journalist for the FT was on surf trip with a group of friends.
Fawas Lafeer, owner of Safa Surf School, told reporters:
“He went surfing at the local surf spot; a trip organised by the hotel he was staying at. He headed away from the beach into the jungle around 900m away from the shore.”
“A local fisherman witnessed a man being dragged into a river, set back from the beach, by a crocodile. The fisherman was on the opposite side of the river and downstream of the incident location. This is the first known crocodile attack in Sri Lanka. Both tourists and locals surf at Elephant Rock, which is a beautiful secluded beach and very safe.“
“Crocodiles in Sri Lanka live only in the fresh, back waters of the jungle. It is almost unheard of for them to come close to the beach. The salt water actually turns them blind.”
“He was learning to surf and after that he wanted to go to the toilet. He went in the jungle, about 800 meters. It was when he was washing his hands that the crocodile took him.”
Deepest condolences to family and friends
