Yahoo News 'Australia's only pet crocodile' surprises firemen after blaze guts home where he has lived since 1958
Firefighters in northern Australia rushed to a blazing house and were surprised to discover a 13-foot crocodile – named Albert - which is 70 years old and lives in the backyard.
The crocodile was caught by Jack Haritos, a renowned hunter in the northern city of Darwin who famously accompanied the Duke of Edinburgh as he hunted and killed his first crocodile in 1956. Mr Haritos apparently had the skin taken to a taxidermist and sent it to Prince Philip in London.
The tale of Albert's provenance begins in 1958 - or so the tale goes - when Mr Haritos was at a party in Darwin where a guest asked him for a crocodile. He went and caught Albert – a deadly saltwater crocodile - in a nearby river, but the guest had sobered up and no longer wanted it.
Mr Haritos persuaded his wife to let them keep the crocodile, which has remained the family’s pet for 59 years.
The crocodile now belongs to Helen Haritos, the daughter of Mr Haritos, who died in 1992.
She has a permit to keep the creature, which is believed to be the only saltwater crocodile kept legally as a pet in Australia. She told ABC News last year that the crocodile was easy to care for but she acknowledged that it remained extremely dangerous.
“It's not quite like my dog but I do have a particular bond and care for the animal," she said. "It's quite easy actually [to look after]. I'd say low maintenance, but treat with respect because they are very dangerous animals."
Ms Haritos was only three years old when the Duke of Edinburgh passed through Darwin on the way to the 1956 Olympics in Melbourne, but the hunting episode remains a source of family pride.
“My father and his three brothers were approached to take Prince Philip out croc shooting in [Darwin] harbour," she recalled. "So they went out in the evening... and they took Prince Philip and his aide and a couple of other men... and Prince Philip actually shot a crocodile."
Ms Haritos was away from her home when it caught fire, apparently after a clothes iron was left on.
The top floor was destroyed but Albert remained safe in his backyard enclosure.
Bill Gleeson, a firefighter, said he was surprised to come face-to-face with the creature, adding: "Thankfully the crocodile didn't affect our operations at all.”
"[Albert] is well contained and completely unaffected by fire,” Mr Gleeson told ABC News. “He seemed quite happy to look at me as I was checking the premises."
Saltwater crocodiles were once widely hunted but have been a protected species since the 1970s. They regard humans as potential prey.
In the past 46 years, there have been at least 35 fatal crocodile attacks in Australia, including 23 in the Northern Territory.
