He should have had one chambered.
A weird, but common practice of Professional Hunters in Africa is to not chamber a round until just before shooting.
Crocodile attacks are very fast, and big crocks can be up over 15 ft high banks and back in the water in a second or two, before the prey understands what is happening.
Peter Hathaway Capstick wrote that he witnessed a successful predation on an man sized antelope that was 15 yards from the water’s edge, if I recall properly.
Once in the water, it is almost impossible to escape.
Big African crocks are over 12 feet long, and weigh several hundred pounds.
A weird, but common practice of Professional Hunters in Africa is to not chamber a round until just before shooting.
I didn’t know that and it’s nor surprising.
There are many YouTube videos of crocks grabbing their prey.
I never saw a PH wait to chamber a round while hunting, they chambered one when leaving the truck, just like we did.