A five-year-old Costa Rican boy was saved from the jaws of a crocodile by his mother, local media reported Saturday.

The boy, Kenner Gutierrez Navarro, was attacked on Friday afternoon outside his house near the Tortuguero National Park in the coastal province of Limon, said La Nacio daily.

His mother, Teresa Navarro, heard the boy's cries as he was being dragged by the crocodile toward the Parismina River. She rushed outside and fought with the crocodile until it released the child, who had bite wounds to the arm, leg and back.

The mother addressed the boy's wounds at home before rushing him to the provincial capital of Guacimo for treatment. Although it took over 90 minutes to reach a hospital in Guacimo, the boy is now in stable condition.

According to studies carried out by the National University of Costa Rica, the country's crocodile population has tripled in the last 15 years and 13 people have lost their lives in crocodile attacks.