An Australian pub owner has gone viral on social media after his unique security procedure was caught on camera.

The fearless landlord is a local legend in the Northern Territory, known as 'King' Kai Hansen.

Amazingly, he was unphased when an 8-foot crocodile started skirting around his Goat Island lodge. Instead of turning and running, Hansen faced down the charging reptile with his weapon of choice - a frying pan.

After giving the croc a few smacks on the head, the animal seemed to reconsider the attack and turned away, rushing back to the water.

The wild moment was caught on camera and quickly began racking up views on social media. While it may be incredibly footage, Hansen told Daily Mail Australia that fighting off a giant reptile with a frying pan wasn't anything too out of the ordinary for him.

"I wouldn't say it's an everyday event, but I've got to stay safe and do what I can," he said.

"When you're driving along in a car and all of a sudden a dog is right in front of you, are you scared, no, you just do what you have to do," the publican continued, adding that in this scenario it all worked out alright. "No one got hurt and the croc got a good lesson."

Hansen went on to recall some of his earlier battles with the saltwater crocodiles who lurk around the area. Back in 2018, his beloved dog Dumb Blonde was eaten by a croc that measured almost 10 feet long.

While battling reptiles may all be a day in the life for Hansen, many people on social media were gobsmacked by the footage and took to the comments section to voice their amazement.

"Who’s crazier? The old man for hitting the gator with a frying pan, or the gator for messing with the old man?" one person tweeted.

Others were quick to note that the bizarre scene would only ever happen in Australia.

"Only in Australia, got to love it," one person tweeted, while another agreed that the scene was "peak Australia."

Featured Image Credit: Rob Walls / Alamy

An Australian man had a narrow escape this week, after miraculously evading the clutches of a 12-foot saltwater crocodile in the Northern Territory, near the town of Darwin. 42-year-old Elston Lami Lami was out hunting in murky water on Croker Island, when he mistook the massive reptile for a log and tried to step on it. Needless to say, it wasn’t best pleased. 

In an interview that Mr. Lami Lami gave to ABC News from his hospital bed, he revealed: "When he come up, when he flipped me and I looked at his eye, he had that crocodile tears on it. Like... you're mine. You're my lunch.”

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He continued: "I hit him three times in the nose, he let me go. Come back again, try and attack me. When he snapped at me, I grabbed him, held him at the jaw with two hands and I was getting weak so I thought the only way to get his attention, I had to hit him again." 

Mr. Lami Lami also stated that he could have been in even more serious trouble, were it not for the presence of his two dogs, brother, and cousin, who were able to make enough noise to distract the animal, allowing Lami Lami to make his escape. 

Watch As Crocodile Attacks Couple In Private Swimming Pool:

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In the end, Mr. Lami Lami could count himself lucky that he only sustained two bites, one to his leg and another around his shorts, which he conceded had been completely shredded in the attack. However, despite his getaway, Lami Lami still had to endure a 30-minute walk back to the car in order to receive treatment.

Despite the obvious injury, Lami Lami was determined to put on a brave face. As he explained to ABC News, “Whatever pain I was going through, I didn’t want to show it to them boys, because I was the older one there.” 

It's a shame Lami Lami wasn't as lucky as this wildebeest:

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Eventually making it back to the car, Lami Lami patched himself up with paracetamol and rudimentary bandages, before driving to nearby Minjilang Community Centre to receive further treatment. From there, he was airlifted to Royal Darwin Hospital. He can count himself lucky that his groin made the trip with him.

There's been an update as a missing businessman was found dead inside a giant crocodile.

Gabriel Batista, 59, disappeared last week while trying to drive across the Komati River in the northeast of South Africa.

His car became stuck on a low bridge, and by the time police arrived, it was empty, Mpumalanga provincial police spokesperson Colonel Mavela Masondo told SABC.

After days of searching, authorities located a 4.5 metre, 500kg Nile crocodile with a visibly swollen stomach, leading to a dramatic operation that ended with the reptile being shot from a helicopter and airlifted out of the river.

Human Remains And Personal Items Found Inside

The search effort lasted four days, with drones and helicopters scanning the river before spotting the crocodile resting on a small island.

According to The Telegraph, a post-mortem examination of the animal revealed body parts inside, including two severed arms, part of a rib cage, and pieces of flesh. Investigators also discovered a ring believed to belong to Batista.

Capt Johan "Pottie" Potgieter, who led the police dive unit, said: "I don’t want to go into too much detail but there was enough inside the stomach to lead us to believe the crocodile ate the missing man. But we will have to wait until the DNA results come back to confirm it."

DNA testing is now expected to confirm whether the remains are Batista’s.

"Besides having a massively full tummy, he didn’t move around or try to slip into the river despite the noise of the drones and the chopper," Potgieter added.

Questions Remain Over Final Moments

It is still unclear whether the missing man had already drowned before being attacked or if he was alive when the crocodile struck.

Batista owned the Border Country Inn and sports bar nearby, and was described by those who knew him as a well-liked family man.

"Gabriel was a lovely guy and a family man... he spent a lot of time up here and customers loved him," a spokesman said.

"He lived in Johannesburg but owned this guest house and bar and spent a lot of time here and was on his way to work on Monday when he was just swept away."

"The family do not want to say anything until the DNA results have been done. It is just terrible and his wife has been here every day with the police diving team," they continued. "It is a nightmare but at the moment there is no family comment."

It is not known whether the man drowned by the time he was attacked by the crocodiles or if he was eaten alive. Credit: SABC News / Facebook

Crocodile May Have Eaten More Than One Victim

Alongside the human remains, investigators also found six different types of shoes inside the crocodile’s stomach, per a report.

Potgieter said this could suggest the animal had attacked others, but warned against jumping to conclusions. "A crocodile will eat or swallow anything," he explained.

Featured image credit: Saurav Pandey Photography / Getty