2006-09-03 22:30:46 · 20 answers · asked by mrsunshine56987 5 in News & Events ➔ Current Events
Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin has been killed in a stingray attack near Cairns on Australia's far north coast.
It is understood he was killed by a stingray barb that went through his chest and wounded him near his heart.
He was swimming near Batt Reef off the coast of Port Douglas filming an underwater documentary when the tragedy occurred.
An emergency services helicopter was flown to the area about 11am (AEST) with a doctor and paramedic on board but it was too late for the Aussie icon.
His producer and closest friend, John Stainton said the world has lost a great wildlife icon, a passionate conservationist and one of the proudest dads on the planet.
"He died doing what he loves best and left this world in a happy and peaceful state of mind," he said.
John Wiegal, owner of the Australian Reptile Park on the New South Wales Central Coast, and a long time friend of Irwin said his death was a terrible shock.
"He was such a larger than life character - this was not supposed to happen," Mr Wiegal said.
"What a lot of people did not realise is that enthusiasm and that focus was geniuine - he was reeved up on all 16 cylinders all the time."
Mr Wiegal said he hoped Irwin's wife Terri could continue his work.
Marine expert at Oceanworld in Sydney, Victoria Brims, told 7News if a person is stung by a stingray in the chest, they could suffer an allergic reaction and a heart attack.
"People are stung very often but it is very rare that someone is killed by a stingray," she said.
Stingray attacks are extremely rare and there have only been two similar deaths reported in Australia.
"You would have to be stung in a crucial area like the heart," Ms Brims added.
Irwin's wife Terri was trekking on Tasmania's Cradle Mountain and local authorities have informed her of her husband's death.
Irwin was best known for his documentary series The Crocodile Hunter.
He was born in Victoria and found his love of animals after following in his father's footsteps, volunteering his services to the Queensland Government's East Coast Crocodile Management program.
He spent years living on his own in the mosquito infested creeks, rivers and mangroves of North Queensland, catching huge crocodiles single-handed.
In June 1992, he married American Terri Raines after they met when she visited Irwin's Australia Zoo.
The 44-year-old is survived by his wife and two children, Bindi and Robert.
Prime Minister John Howard said Irwin captured the immagination of Australia and the world through The Crocodile Hunter.
"Steve was also a passionate environmentalist who used his television programmes and his award-winning Australia Zoo to promote a serious conservation message," Mr Howard said.
"He made an extraordinary contribution to creating a widespread appreciation of the value and uniqueness of Australian wildlife.
"Steve was a dynamic personality who will be greatly missed by his legion of fans in Australia and around the world."
Deputy Prime Minister and Leader of The Nationals, Mark Vaile, said Australians will be saddened and shocked by the sudden death of Mr Irwin.
"I was a tremendous fan of Steve Irwin because of his larger than life personality and his ability to highlight wildlife conservation in a way that people from all walks of life could identify with," Mr Vaile said.
"Steve was an amazing Australian."
Queensland Premier Peter Beattie said the loss of Mr Irwin would be sorely felt.
"Steve made a signification contribution to the conservation of many other species through his work establishing the Australia Wildlife Hospital at Beerwah, research projects on koalas, wombats and other threatened species," Mr Beattie said.
People have begun laying flowers in memory of Mr Irwin at his family's animal park, Australia Zoo, north of Brisbane.
2006-09-03 22:37:03 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
Much to the dismay of animal lovers around the world - Steve 'Crocodile Hunter' Irwin was killed when a stingray he was filming for an underwater documentary swung around and stabbed the barb directly into Steve's heart, killing him instantly.
The world lost a great conservationist, environmentalist, naturalist, TV personality, and person. Condolences to Terri, Bindi, litlle and big Bob, as well as the Australia Zoo team(including the animals there). I miss him already and can't imagine anyone ever being even close to him.
2006-09-04 16:25:34 · answer #2 · answered by a_hazelett 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I just saw a news conference and he was swimming in shallow water filming a segment for his daugher Bindi's upcoming tv show.
He was filming a bull ray (stingray) and they are only topped in size by the manna ray. Their barbs can be razor sharp and for bull rays be up to 2 meters (6 feet long).
The camera man filming with steve said he was snorkling in 5-6 feet of water but that he swam above a bull ray. The Bull ray probably thought he was being attacked and instead of swimming away, he turned around and raised up his barb and stabbed him in the heart so he didn't have a chance. He blead to death and probably died in a minute or so.
The rays are as quick as some snake strikes so he didn't have a chance. He probably got a little close to it and it freaked.
They threw him into the boat and did CPR for about 30 minutes; the length of the ride back to the helicopter airport. But he was pretty much dead. He blead out quick so it must have been very sad to know the truth while doing CPR.
A friend of mine got stung by a small sting ray; about 8 inches long and it would not stop bleeding; it was such a nasty cut. I couldn't imagine what a 5 foot ray would do.
2006-09-03 23:30:10 · answer #3 · answered by Ice4444 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
He was stabbed in the chest by a stingray while shooting a wildlife documentary on the Great Barrier Reef. Sting Rays are not usually deadly. Steve's is the third death on Aussie Records. The rays poison causes tissue to die. With the stab in the heart + the poison the poor guy didn't stand a chance. Could have happened to anyone scuba diving.
RIP Steve. We love you.
Aussie Aussie Aussie. Oi Oi Oi.
2006-09-03 22:36:01 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
I just saw the news. Apparently, he was stung directly in the heart by some type of stingray/thing. The poison went into his system so fast, he suffered a major heart attack and died instantly. To tell you the truth, I'm surprised he lived this long, he took many, many chances, all for the ratings. Too bad-he leaves a wife and two small children.
2006-09-04 01:14:39 · answer #5 · answered by mcghankathy 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
He was stung by a stingray which struck his heart with it's barbed tail at the Great Barrier Reef while filming a documentary. Crews unsuccessfully attempted to revive him with CPR. By the time he was transported from the scene he was pronounced dead. Sting Rays are usually not aggressive and it may be that he accidentally stepped on the ray. They have a very potent venom that is released from the barbed tail and it is presumed he died almost instantaneously.
2006-09-03 22:43:58 · answer #6 · answered by beba 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
He was filming a underwater shoot near Brisbane ,Australia... Got it in the chest from a stingray ...
News kept it quiet only reporting an accident or death of personnel .....When Irwins family was notified ...there was a news release.......
Its 3:40 am where I am .nothing on CNN , or MSNBC.......
Theres been alot of joking on this site , I've done it too....But a part of our TV lives has gone.....Man ..I thought this guy was tough..and a little crazy ..
So long from America,Steve Irwin ..URDMAN !
2006-09-03 22:39:26 · answer #7 · answered by cesare214 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋
He was stung in the heart by a stingray. I miss him already.
How many other people in the world LOVE their job the way that man did? To be happy at work every single day is surely something most people only dream of.
Heartfelt thanks to Steve for the education and style, and condolences to the family.
2006-09-03 22:32:54 · answer #8 · answered by sueflower 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
If you haven't heard already, Steve Irwin died today on the 4th of September, on the Barrier Reef, near Cairns filming a wildlife documentry. As a sign of respect for the Australian cultural icon if you have MSN or yahoo messenger, please place a turtle ( tu ) at the start of your MSN name.
2006-09-03 22:38:53 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
BRISBANE, Australia - Steve Irwin, the hugely popular Australian television personality and environmentalist known as the "Crocodile Hunter," was killed Monday by a stingray during a diving expedition. He was 44.
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Irwin was filming an underwater documentary on the Great Barrier Reef in northeastern Queensland state when he was stung, Sydney's The Daily Telegraph newspaper reported on its Web site.
He collapsed at Batt Reef, near Low Isle and the resort town of Port Douglas, Queensland state police said in a statement. Port Douglas is about 1,260 miles north of Brisbane, the state capital.
A rescue helicopter rushed to the scene but Irwin had died, the statement said.
Queensland ambulance service spokesman Bob Hamil confirmed that a diver had been killed by a stingray off Lowe Isles Reef and said cause of death appeared to be a "stingray strike to the chest."
Irwin was famous for his enthusiasm for wildlife and his catchword "Crikey!" in his television program "Crocodile Hunter," which was first broadcast in Australia in 1992 and has aired around the world on the Discovery channel.
He rode his image into a feature film, and developed the Australia Zoo as a tourist attraction.
Irwin had received some negative publicity in recent years. In January 2004, he stunned onlookers at the Australia Zoo reptile park by carrying his month-old son into a crocodile pen during a wildlife show. He tucked the infant under one arm while tossing the 13-foot reptile a piece of meat with the other.
Authorities declined to charge Irwin for violating safety regulations.
Later that year, he was accused of getting too close to penguins, a seal and humpback whales in Antarctica while making a documentary. Irwin denied any wrongdoing, and an Australian Environment Department investigation recommended no action be taken.
Irwin was also seen as a vocal critic of wildlife hunts in Australia. The federal government recently dropped plans to allow crocodile safaris for wealthy tourists in the Northern Territory following his vehement objections.
Irwin told the Australian television program "A Current Affair" that "killing one of our beautiful animals in the name of trophy hunting will have a very negative impact on tourism, which scares the living daylights out of me."
He is survived by his American wife Terri, from Eugene, Ore., and their daughter Bindi Sue, 8, and son Bob, who will turn 3 in December.
Foreign Minister Alexander Downer, who used a photograph of his family at Australia Zoo for his official Christmas card last year, hailed Irwin for his work in promoting Australia through projects such as "G'Day LA," an Australian tourism and trade promotion week in Los Angeles in January.
"The minister knew him, was fond of him and was very, very appreciative of all the work he'd done to promote Australia overseas," Downer's spokesman Tony Parkinson said.
Stingrays have flat bodies and tails with serrated spines, which contain venom and can cause cuts and puncture wounds. The creatures are not aggressive and injury usually occurs when a swimmer or diver accidentally steps on one.
2006-09-03 22:38:52 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋