Man Loses More Than Just Wedding Ring

A man in Johannesburg, South Africa lost more than his wedding ring after a crocodile ate it, along with the arm it was on.

"He took my wedding ring, I suppose he ate it up", 47-year-old farm manager, Abrahamse said from his hospital as he recounted his struggle with a man-eating reptile.

Abrahamse had the lower part of his left arm torn off in the attack but he considers himself lucky as he could easily have lost his life.

"I took my horse for an evening swim in one of the farm dams. There are lots of crocs and hippos in the area but they move around all the time, from dam to dam and into the river and out again", he said. "I was on the lookout for hippos and didn't see any. It slipped my mind that there might be crocodiles", he said.

He was standing belly-deep in water about 5 metres from the shore when he felt a biting jolt in his left hip. He said thought it was a hippo but quickly realized it was a crocodile.

"I started to fight immediately. So I hit him with my left arm and then he went for my left forearm. It pulled me under the water for a few seconds and I knew this was his biggest advantage. I realized if I didn't stand up my wife will never find me again", he said.

Somehow, he managed to stumble to his feet and then he felt the crocodile lose its grip. "What I didn't realize at the time was that it had let go because it had taken part of my left arm off", he said. Abrahamse then grabbed the rope of his horse with his right hand which dragged him to safety.

"I'm lucky, I didn't lose too much blood", he said.

At least the excuse for losing his wedding ring is one you can't argue with.

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