It is ironic but the Kintore Street School has had to pull its plastic crocs from the river because of real life crocodiles.
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The school was planning to release 1000 toy crocs down the Katherine River on Saturday as part of their annual fundraiser.
“Parks and Wildlife have advised us not to go anywhere near the river with people,” a spokeswoman from the school said.
“The race will now be held on the banks of the Low Level road with races to start at 10.
“We will be running the crocs down orange plastic, so it will be like a slip and slide without the bubbles.
The race will be made possible with the help of some local firemen blasting the slide with water.
“We will be running ten heats, with the first ten over the line going into the final,” she said.
Kintore Street School principal Marg Chamberlain said money raised will go towards installing softfall underneath the school’s playground.
“In previous years the money has bought a wheel-chair bus and a shade cloth over the playground,” Ms Chamberlain said.
More than $10,000 is raised each year as part of the fun fundraising race.
The first crocodile over the finish line scores $1000 and each of the next 100 each collects a prize.
The race was modified last year as well because of a lurking life size saltwater reptile.
Rangers trapped the biggest crocodile of the year near Katherine last month.
The 3.87 metre saltie was trapped at Donkey Camp on the Katherine River.
It was the fifth crocodile to be pulled from local waters so far this year.
With the five saltwater crocs trapped already this year, Katherine is on track to beat its crocodile capture number of six, from the whole of last year.
Northern Territory Wildlife rangers have again warned local people, and visitors, from swimming in local waterways.
Rangers said the croc would have swum through the Low Level and Knotts Crossing.