New bride who lost one of her arms in a crocodile attack and still got married days later is grateful to be alive. The couple narrated the story about how it all happened. The crocodile has since then been found and killed.
Zanele Ndolvu, age 25 got married five days after her arm was ripped off by a crocodile. The newlywed couple tied the knot in the hospital where she was treated and she says the whole experience has made her a more positive person.
After days of hunting the crocodile, national park rangers found it sunbathing and shot it dead amid fears it would kill tourists having had a taste for human flesh.
WHAT ACTUALLY HAPPENED?
The couple narrated the story of the attack saying they were both in a canoe in Zimbabwe when the attack happened near Victoria Falls.
They were with a group of canoeists and tour guides when the crocodile burst the inflatable vessels by biting them, sending them into the water.
“The waters were very calm and we had guides and there were about seven boats in the water when the crocodile just jumped out”. Husband Jamie narrated.
While others were able to escape to the safety of the riverbank, Mrs Ndlovu-Fox became a victim of the crocodile
“It jumped out of the water and bit a chunk of my right arm together with the side of the canoe which started deflating and it all just happened so fast’. She said.
“The crocodile bit me again and pulled me into the water. My husband was thrown out the opposite side so the boat was between the two of us’. She added.
“Jamie swam over to where I was struggling with the crocodile that was trying to pull me to the bottom of the river and grabbed my waist and with the other hand he rained blows down on the crocodile.
One of the tour guides who was first aid trained applied a tourniquet from the first aid kit while the other called for a helicopter to whisk Mrs Ndlovu-Fox to the nearest hospital.
Doctors at the Victoria Falls initially treated her then she was airlifted to the Mater Dei Hospital in Bulawayo where doctors had to amputate what was left.
“The pain was excruciating but Jamie was by my side and I summoned the strength to fight through it.”
In spite of her injuries, the Fox-Ndlovu wedding went ahead, albeit at a different venue with the bride still requiring medical treatment.
Speaking from her hospital bed in Zimbabwe, she told the country’s Chronicle newspaper: “The vows say it all – in sickness and in health.”
“I get depressed by people who come here to hospital and start crying. I know people feel pity for me but being sorrowful does not help the situation’. She carried on.
The new bride said: “I spent a lot of time preparing for my wedding day. I didn’t know that fate would have me being wed in a hospital chapel with one limb missing.
“But in all this, I am not complaining and my wedding was the best and I am so happy we proceeded despite all the drama and I have a wonderful husband.”
THE HUSBAND
Her husband Jamie, who works for the National Citizen Service, told The Chronicle: “It is a miracle she is here there is no other way to explain it. I thought at first it was a joke and it took about five seconds to see it was actually real.
“It just jumped from the water and grabbed her arm and she was pulled one side out of the boat and I fell out on the other. The crocodile eventually let go.
“I could see her arm hanging off and I could see it was really serious. The guides were using towels to stem the blood. She was lying on the floor of the boat.
“We are both outdoors people but I’m not sure if we will go canoeing again. I just want her to get better soon and then we can plan our lives together.
“I never even at one point thought of calling off the wedding. I love her even more and this incident made me feel even more the deep feeling behind our vows.
“For better or worse, in sickness and in health, that’s just how it’s going to be.”
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