Steve Irwin, The Crocodile Hunter, is dead.

[Greyroofoo]

Derails to follow....


Amazing though, alive one minute and dead the next.

[Cringer]

Derails to follow....


Amazing though, alive one minute and dead the next.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20060904/wl_afp/australiapeopleirwinwildlife_060904045124

SYDNEY (AFP) - World-renowned "crocodile hunter" and television environmentalist Steve Irwin has died following a stingray attack in northeastern Australia, local government sources said.

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Irwin, 44, known for his enthusiastic approach to even the deadliest of wildlife, was killed when a stingray barb punctured his chest during the filming and underwater documentary, the sources quoted by the Australian Associated Press said.

The larger-than-life Irwin, dubbed "The Crocodile Hunter" after the nature documentary series he hosted, was filming off the coast of Port Douglas in the state of Queensland when the accident took place.

-------------------

That's nuts, just like him.

[Groundhog]

Man, this is all over the news over here right now.

The guy spends his life messing with crocs, and then gets killed by a stingray...

I can just imagine all the Irwin jokes that are going to be e-mailed around now.

[JW]

Here is a link to another story on this new item, which I was rushing to post first here. But I was too slow again.

http://www.news.com.au/story/0,10117,20349890-29277,00.html?from=public_rss

[Deattribution]

wow that sucks, he always seemed like a real good guy.

[molson]

Ouch.

The guy sure enjoyed himself while he was here.

[Captain2711]

Seemed like a great guy, great show, but if you play with fire scarecrow your gonna get burned.

[MikeVic]

:(

[Eaglesfan27]

I always wondered if they did something to keep the animals he worked with sedated. I guess not. Sad way to die.

[JW]

I'm curious. Was he killed by a puncture wound, i.e., stabbing, or by poison? How would it kill him?

[Lorena]

Dang, that sucks :(

I hope the wife doesn't find out by tv or radio or something... that would really suck.

EDIT: Nvm, the article says she's in the mountains in Tasmania.

[molson]

I'm curious. Was he killed by a puncture wound, i.e., stabbing, or by poison? How would it kill him?

Some reports are saying it was a stingray barb through the heart.

[Galaxy]

Wow...

Did the Stingray sting him, or attack him?

[Galaxy]

From Wikipedia:

"Their stinger is a razor-sharp, barbed or serrated cartilaginous spine which grows from the ray's whip-like tail (like a fingernail). It is coated with a toxic venom. This gives them their common name of stingrays, but that name can also be used to refer to any poisonous ray.

Dasyatids do not attack aggressively, or even actively defend themselves. When threatened their primary reaction is to swim away. However, when they are attacked by predators or stepped on, the barbed stinger in their tail is mechanically whipped up, usually into the offending foot; it is also possible, although less likely, to be stung "accidentally" by brushing against the stinger. Contact with the stinger causes local trauma (from the cut itself), pain and swelling from the venom, and possible infection from parts of the stinger left in the wound, as well as from seawater entering the wound. It is possible for ray stings to be fatal if they sever major arteries, are in the chest or pelvic region, or are improperly treated. Their stingers are normally ineffective against their main predator, sharks.

Treatment for stings includes hot water (as hot as the victim can stand), which helps ease pain and break down the venom, and antibiotics. Vinegar or urine may or may not be successful in easing pain; neither cleans the wound properly. Other possible pain remedies include papain (papaya extract, contained in unseasoned powdered meat tenderizer), which may break down the protein of the toxins, though this may be more appropriate for jellyfish and similar stings. Pain normally lasts up to 48 hours but is most severe in the first 30-60 minutes and may be accompanied by nausea, fatigue, headaches, fever, and chills."

[Eaglesfan27]

If not through the heart, a stab wound could cause a tension pneumothorax or other breathing problems that could have killed him quickly. Or, perhaps a major blood vessel was punctured and he quickly bled out.

[mrsimperless]

I'm curious. Was he killed by a puncture wound, i.e., stabbing, or by poison? How would it kill him?

I was wondering the exact same thing. The article makes it sound like the stab wound killed him. But the poison can't be good for you either. You'd think that his crew would have whatever antidote or medicine would be needed for poison knowing he was going to be swimming with them.

[Swaggs]

That's too bad, but at least he died doing what he loved to do.

Very unfortunate for his wife and family. I believe he had a small child. :(

[law90026]

Poor guy :( and his family

I always wondered when his activities would catch up with him though, considering some of the things he does.

[Galaxy]

That's too bad, but at least he died doing what he loved to do.

Very unfortunate for his wife and family. I believe he had a small child. :(

If I'm not mistaken, I believe he has two kids.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Very sad news.

[cthomer5000]

Good guy, but unfortunately responsible for the worst movie of all time. RIP.

[biological warrior]

I'm curious. Was he killed by a puncture wound, i.e., stabbing, or by poison? How would it kill him?

Reports say it was a puncture wound and he died instantly.

RIP.

[kingfc22]

:(

[kingfc22]

Doesn't take wikipedia long at all.

Death

On September 4, 2006, shortly after 11:00 a.m. local time, Irwin was killed in a marine accident while filming an underwater documentary in the Batt Reef off the Low Isles near Port Douglas, north of Cairns, Queensland, Australia. It is believed that a stingray barb penetrated his chest, causing a fatal wound, though this has yet to be confirmed by Australian officials.<sup id="_ref-1" class="reference">[2]</sup>

[Bearcat729]

Good guy, but unfortunately responsible for the worst movie of all time. RIP.

He was responsible for Bio-Dome?

[sachmo71]

My money was on the funnel web spider. That sucks.

[bbor]

:(

[bulletsponge]

Crikey :(

[Glengoyne]

Some reports are saying it was a stingray barb through the heart.


I'm thinking it was the venom that did him in, with the severity increasing because of the proximity to the heart. I just can't imagine a sting ray penetrating all of the way through the chest wall.

[Glengoyne]

Reports say it was a puncture wound and he died instantly.

RIP.
Then again, maybe I'll have to adjust my view of either what a stingray is capable of, or otherwise reconsider the relative frailty of the human body.

[Glengoyne]

My money was on the funnel web spider. That sucks.

Details aside, I would have put my money on a snake.

[watravaler]

Man, I loved this guy. RIP

[Cringer]

If I'm not mistaken, I believe he has two kids.

Yeah, and he almost fed the baby to a gator last year, crazy bastard.

[Fidatelo]

First the Grizzly Man, now this. Is no one safe?

[BYU 14]

Really sucks, I loved that show. Left an 8 year old Daughter and a 3 year old Son too, very sad.

[Dutch]

Sad news.... :(

[Northwood_DK]

Sad, RIP

[Rizon]

Good guy, but unfortunately responsible for the worst movie of all time. RIP.

He was in Meet the Deedles?

[Vince]

:(

[Desmond]

Everytime you hear a boom of thunder in the summer sky, that's Steve Irwin wrestling an alligator to the ground in heaven.

[Vince]

My little sister absolutely loved this guy. I really have no idea how she's going to handle this (she's 14). I think she'll be fine, but then again I don't remember the first time I had to deal with something like this. All my childhood heroes are still alive, to my knowledge. I mean, she probably watches Animal Planet about 4 hours a day, largely because of Steve Irwin. She could tell you all about his dog, it's name, and when it was last sick. I wish there were something I could do to know that she would be ok with this tomorrow.

[RainMaker]

It's very sad considering all the good he has done for wildlife across the globe. He seemed like a genuine guy who was passionate about animals. He seemed like a good family guy too.

[stevew]

Good guy, but unfortunately responsible for the worst movie of all time. RIP.

He was in Santa with Muscles?

RIP Croc Hunter.

[King of New York]

So should I tell my kids myself (they're 5 and 3), so that they hear it from me first and not from their friends at pre-school? Or do I not tell them, and hope that this news passes them by?

[JeeberD]

:(

[Raiders Army]

RIP

[cougarfreak]

Wow......VERY sad news. I teach geography, and used his videos on days when I wanted the kids to relax. Great guy, great passion for wildlife. Very bad luck to have the stinger penetrate his heart. RIP.

[cougarfreak]

Wow......VERY sad news. I teach geography, and used his videos on days when I wanted the kids to relax. Great guy, great passion for wildlife. Very bad luck to have the stinger penetrate his heart. RIP.

[Ksyrup]

We told our 7 year old seconds before the top o the news at 8am this morning.

[Bonegavel]

Sad, but I'm suprised he lasted this long.

[wade moore]

This is indeed sad. He was more than just entertaining, as others have mentioned, but he did a lot of good for wildlife in this world on and off camera.

However, this was a serious chance at a great thread title missed. It should have merely said "Oh Crikey!"

[Oilers9911]

Despite his seemingly crazy antics, the man knew what he was doing and did more good for wildlife and conservation than pretty much anyone. Let's hope his wife and family keep that memory of him alive and continue his good work. He seemed like just a regular guy and will be missed.

[bulletsponge]

sorry i didnt mean to be disrepectful to anyone.

[dbd1963]

There's no silver lining for his kids. You know they loved him dearly -- who wouldn't want a dad like that?

[nilodor]

This is terrible. Watching his shows gave me a much larger appreciation of nature and also helped me overcome my fear of snakes and spiders. He is largely responsible for making me enviornmentally aware and pushing my career in that direction.

[Noble_Platypus]

Despite his seemingly crazy antics, the man knew what he was doing and did more good for wildlife and conservation than pretty much anyone. Let's hope his wife and family keep that memory of him alive and continue his good work. He seemed like just a regular guy and will be missed.

My thoughts as well. I admired all he did for animals and the environment. My wife is a huge animal lover (She is a vet tech) and is very upset at the news.

[Crim]

Yeah, very sad, most especially for the kids. My wife and i joked numerous times over the years that Steve was gonna get what's coming to him sooner or later, but now that it's happened, it's almost unreal. Tragic.

[Neuqua]

Very sad.

I only hope to go doing what I am so passionate about one day. RIP.

[FrogMan]

very sad news. I know I shouldn't be surprised, but I never expected this guy to die doing his work the way he did...

:(

GM

[watravaler]

So should I tell my kids myself (they're 5 and 3), so that they hear it from me first and not from their friends at pre-school? Or do I not tell them, and hope that this news passes them by?

At those ages, just let it pass. If they are curious, they will ask you.

[AlexB]

Edited: probably an overreaction to bulletsponge's post

[chinaski]

this makes me way more sad than I would have imagined. :(

[Mike Lowe]

Yeah, very sad, most especially for the kids. My wife and i joked numerous times over the years that Steve was gonna get what's coming to him sooner or later, but now that it's happened, it's almost unreal. Tragic.

Yeah, I felt this way too but I assumed there were HUGE precautions taken in regards to any situation that may come about; obviously this one slipped through the cracks. Sad that something as freakish as this came about. I doubt he or his crew would have ever put him in any kind of danger that they weren't prepared for. This was the only thing that could have gone wrong :-(

[JonInMiddleGA]

Edited: probably an overreaction to bulletsponge's post

Actually, I was pretty much thinking what you originally posted.

[Eaglesfan27]

Yeah, my grandfather died with a colostomy bag and he was in bed. He was a very good man. I don't think it was that much of an overreaction JRS. You just suggested that he might want to show some sensitivity and edit his post.

[thealmighty]

Sad.

And, sick bastard that I am, I want to see the footage which, as it was for a documentary, they must have (much like I wanted to hear the tape from Grizzly Man...as I say, I am a demented person). I assume it will be burned, though, or some such.

Sick, but I say that as someont who has seen every Crocodile Hunter episode three times or more.

[Oilers9911]

I don't think it's sick. It's human nature to be curious, like seeing an auto racing accident or something. I personally do not want to see the man die on film. Now if it were a scumbag like Bin laden or something i'd feel different. Yes I know Bin laden is not filming stingrays in Australia. :)

[Glengoyne]

.... Yes I know Bin laden is not filming stingrays in Australia. :)

I saw that tape, but it was just Cringer on Holliday.

[molson]

And, sick bastard that I am, I want to see the footage which, as it was for a documentary, they must have (much like I wanted to hear the tape from Grizzly Man...as I say, I am a demented person). I assume it will be burned, though, or some such.


A collegue of his did say that he saw footage, and that Irwin was surprised by a stingray that was mostly burried in the sand.

[Craptacular]

Can he be nominated for some kind of lifetime achievement Darwin award, even though he has already reproduced?

[Vegas Vic]

"He came over the top of a stingray and the stingray's barb went up and went into his chest and put a hole into his heart. It's likely that he possibly died instantly when the barb hit him, and I don't think that he felt any pain."

Link (http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/steve-irwin-killed-by-stingray/2006/09/04/1157222051512.html?page=fullpage#contentSwap1)

[Oilers9911]

Can he be nominated for some kind of lifetime achievement Darwin award, even though he has already reproduced?

Why should he get a Darwin?

[molson]

Why should he get a Darwin?

Because dedicating your life to something you love, obtaining financial security for your family, and being beloved by millions worldwide is obviously stupid? That's my best guess.

[jeff061]

And he's passed his genes on already sooo......?

[MJ4H]

sigh

[Kodos]

I was sad to hear this. I always figured he would have a high chance of something going wrong, but it's still sad. :(

[Galaxy]

Yeah, I felt this way too but I assumed there were HUGE precautions taken in regards to any situation that may come about; obviously this one slipped through the cracks. Sad that something as freakish as this came about. I doubt he or his crew would have ever put him in any kind of danger that they weren't prepared for. This was the only thing that could have gone wrong :-(


He understood each and every animal and did his homework. In a Larry King interview, he truly showed respect for animals and was born to two animal-loving parents who lived in a reptile park. Took over or created (not sure which) the Australia Zoo and used it to lead a fight on wildlife conservation and educating millions.

As stingrays, they are pretty harmless unless they are provoked. I guess when you walk in sting ray areas, you "shuffle" your feet and that will alert the stingrays, and the will move away. Also, when they barb someone, they don't control where it goes. Just a freak accident.

[Peregrine]

Very sad news. I was talking with some friends about this yesterday, and we were trying to figure out why it seemed this was really upsetting to us, even people who didn't watch his shows religiously. The best I could come up with, it just means something to us that we know there are people out there in the world, wrestling crocs, walking around in the desert and picking up poisonous snakes, and so on. Our culture is so insulated from "real" experiences these days it's good to know at least someone was doing all the stuff we imagine ourselves doing in dreams.

[3ric]

Peregrine:
well put. He lived his life in full and had experienced more wonders of nature than anyone of us ever will. He'll be missed.

[Groundhog]

It's sort of strange seeing the international response to this. Over here in Australia he was seen as very kooky, and made fun of and criticized for really playing out the "Crocodile Dundee-esque sterotypical Aussie". Everyone here knows of him and has seen him on TV a bunch, but his popularity wasn't even close to the level it reached in the States.

I am an animal lover though, and I respect anyone that helps bring awareness to wild life, and few succeed like Irwin did. When I first heard the news yesterday it was a little shocking, but it's seemed to get a little more shocking now for some reason.

I liked this quote from the CNN article from Irwin:

"When I see what's happened all over the world, they're looking at me as this very popular, wildlife warrior Australian bloke," he told the ABC.

"And yet back here in my own country, some people find me a little bit embarrassing. You know, there's this ... they kind of cringe, you know, 'cause I'm coming out with 'Crikey' and 'Look at this beauty.' "

Of course he played up that image and I doubt very much he was running around using Crikey off camera, but the image he created really stuck and was responsible for his popularity.

Certainly very sad to see a man like this go, especially at his age, and with the family that he's left behind.

[Ksyrup]

The thing that strikes me about the way he died was the fact that he always stressed that he was "100% in control" of the animals he dealt with (or the situations he put himself in). And that was probably not much of an exaggeration when it came to the situations he staged for the camera. But here, when he was dealing with a wild but not that dangerous creature, that's when he finally had the unexpected, uncontrolled reaction he had always protected against. It's like someone decided to show him that he wasn't always in control. Basically, this was Ben Roethlisburger with a tragic ending.

Still, it's unfortunate that he died. I don't think I've ever seen someone with such a passion for what he did and for life in general. We were watching bits and pieces of the shows on Animal Planet last night, and right after his daughter was born, there's a shot of him looking over his wife's shoulder at his newborn baby with these huge, saucer eyes. And my wife and I started laughing because that's just the kind of person he was...you could see in his eyes that he was taking it all in with the wonder and amazement of a 6 year old. And that's something that very few of us do anymore as we age. And for that enthusiasm for animals and life, he will be missed.

[JonInMiddleGA]

The thing that strikes me about the way he died was the fact that he always stressed that he was "100% in control" of the animals he dealt with (or the situations he put himself in). And that was probably not much of an exaggeration when it came to the situations he staged for the camera. But here, when he was dealing with a wild but not that dangerous creature, that's when he finally had the unexpected, uncontrolled reaction he had always protected against.

I saw a comment from his manager about that this morning. To paraphrase, he said they had talked about the water being a much more likely place for him to encounter a serious problem. Not so much because the land stuff was more staged, but rather because his expertise was on land & with land animals, basically that he was a bit out of his element in a situation like the one that led to his death.

[Butter]

However, this was a serious chance at a great thread title missed. It should have merely said "Oh Crikey!"

Absolutely.

[Ksyrup]

True, he was the "croc hunter."

[mrsimperless]

Because dedicating your life to something you love, obtaining financial security for your family, and being beloved by millions worldwide is obviously stupid? That's my best guess.

I agree with everything you said. He was a great man and died doing what he loved. Who could ask for more?

I could be wrong, but I don't think the original intent of the post was malicious. Seemed he was trying to say something more along the lines of "If you play with fire..."

Although who would have thought it would have ever happened in such an innocent manner, if you will. Still, if you spend the majority of your time around wild animals you never know what can happen.

I have no idea why, because I wasn't even a big fan of his, but I'm really upset by this.

RIP Steve.

[mrsimperless]

I saw a comment from his manager about that this morning. To paraphrase, he said they had talked about the water being a much more likely place for him to encounter a serious problem. Not so much because the land stuff was more staged, but rather because his expertise was on land & with land animals, basically that he was a bit out of his element in a situation like the one that led to his death.

Dola. And agreed. Regardless of your reaction time on land, you move so much slower under water. Especially compared to the creatures who live and breathe there. Reggie Bush probably couldn't have dodged that strike.

It sucks, because just an inch or two in any direction and he could have been fine. The human body is a fragile thing. It makes you think and appreciate what you have.

[Ksyrup]

Not to mention that he wasn't dealing with sea creatures from the time he was a small boy. Part of what we saw last night was him describing the first croc he captured. At 9 years old. In the dark. With his dad's encouragement. You live 35+ years like that with only a few "flesh wounds" and your bound to think you're pretty much invincible.

[Ksyrup]

I have no idea why, because I wasn't even a big fan of his, but I'm really upset by this.

RIP Steve.

I agree. I can't say my wife was "a fan," but she watches Animal Planet all the time and occasionally we'd watch his stuff. But ordinarily, I just blew it off as him being crazy. Which he was, in some respects. But there's no denying that he made wildlife an interesting subject for 5 year olds and 45 year olds alike. And the list of things he did in the namer of conservation is truly remarkable. No one can claim it was all an act for the fame and money.

[Ksyrup]

Double Dola.

You know you're knee-deep in parenthood when the first thought that comes to your mind after hearing he's dead is, "I bet the Wiggles are going to be really upset about this."

[sachmo71]

Double Dola.

You know you're knee-deep in parenthood when the first thought that comes to your mind after hearing he's dead is, "I bet the Wiggles are going to be really upset about this."

:D

[TroyF]

The thing that always struck me about him is how enthusiastic he was. There are so few people in the world that love their jobs, love what they do, and can share it with that many people the way he did.

He was nutty and a flake. But he also seemed to me to be a genuniely nice guy who loved what he did. I didn't watch his shows all the time, but I did watch them on occasion and was always entertained. RIP Croc Hunter. You'll be missed.

[Lorena]

I might have watched his show a handful of times, but to see someone that such a passion for life is really, really heartbreaking.

BTW, the Animal Planet will have a tribute him at 5pm Central which I will definitely watch in his honor.

http://www.foxnews.com/wires/2006Sep04/0,4670,CrocodileHunterDiscovery,00.html

[King of New York]

Double Dola.

You know you're knee-deep in parenthood when the first thought that comes to your mind after hearing he's dead is, "I bet the Wiggles are going to be really upset about this."

It's the Curse of the Wiggles, man.

1) The Chef: played by Paul Hester, drummer for Crowded House, commits suicide in 2005.

2) Steve Irwin: featured performer in a Wiggles DVD, stabbed to death by a stingray, 2006.

3) The Wiggles did a segment with some New York firefighters, at least one of whom is killed during 9/11 (I can't remember the guy's name.)

Coincidence?

Right now, Dorothy the Dinosaur has locked herself in a room filled with religious symbols, trying to ward off the inevitable.

[Ksyrup]

I didn't realize that was Paul Hester! Learn something every day.

You can add another...that dude from last year's Rockstar: INXS show, Mig, apparently played Wags the Dog on tour with them. He committed career suicide.

[FrogMan]

I didn't realize that was Paul Hester! Learn something every day.

You can add another...that dude from last year's Rockstar: INXS show, Mig, apparently played Wags the Dog on tour with them. He committed career suicide.

Well, blow me down!

:D

FM

[Craptacular]

Why should he get a Darwin?

Because dedicating your life to something you love, obtaining financial security for your family, and being beloved by millions worldwide is obviously stupid? That's my best guess.

I agree with everything you said. He was a great man and died doing what he loved. Who could ask for more?

I could be wrong, but I don't think the original intent of the post was malicious. Seemed he was trying to say something more along the lines of "If you play with fire..."

Although who would have thought it would have ever happened in such an innocent manner, if you will. Still, if you spend the majority of your time around wild animals you never know what can happen.

Mrsimperless may have gotten my basic drift. I'm not a fan, but I respect the love of animals and the passion that he had. Personally, from the admittedly few instances where I've seen his show, and from various accounts of his behavior, it seems like he repeatedly did incredibly stupid things and put his life in danger (hence the "lifetime achievement award"). Regardless of the various reasons he may have done so (entertainment, animal awareness, lunacy, etc), and no matter what the end result was, he seemed to be unnecessarily risking his life. I can understand if people argue the "unnecessarily" part. If he wasn't such a nutcase, those of us who like to watch train wrecks (ie, the human race) most likely would not have watched, thereby reducing the amount of awareness and money that came with his popularity. He could still have been a loving husband and father, and passionate animal activist ... it's just we wouldn't have known about it.

The rules of the Darwin award say that having already reproduced doesn't necessarily disqualify someone from a Darwin, since there is a chance that the children get the opposite genes from the other parent. In this case, that seems unlikely.

By the way, molson, Evil Knievel, members of our military, and Iraqi suicide bombers can all meet your criteria. Those qualities don't automatically make people stupid.

[Galaxy]

See, I never saw him as "stupid" or "crazy". He's someone who calculated the risks, understood his animals and his respect for them is incredible.

[Ksyrup]

I saw this last night and thought it really drove home how freakish this was. I had no idea the numbers were so small...


"It's just absolutely unbelievable," Nigel Marven, a well-known wildlife specialist who was a longtime friend of Irwin's, said on The Early Show. "To be killed by a big crocodile or bitten by a snake, you'd have believed it. But a stingray? There's only been three cases in Australia of deaths by stingrays in the last 100 years. Seventeen worldwide. So it's a tremendous freak accident."

[Butter]

You can add another...that dude from last year's Rockstar: INXS show, Mig, apparently played Wags the Dog on tour with them.

You know Wags the Dog? He likes to tango.

[Ksyrup]

http://www.thewiggles.com.au/about/friends/wags/wagsfriend.jpg

Bastard. Now I've got that song and those cheesy French mustaches in my head...

[Runtheball]

Yeah, I felt this way too but I assumed there were HUGE precautions taken in regards to any situation that may come about; obviously this one slipped through the cracks. Sad that something as freakish as this came about. I doubt he or his crew would have ever put him in any kind of danger that they weren't prepared for. This was the only thing that could have gone wrong :-(

I heard on the news that the filming he was doing was for a show called "Earth's most deadly creatures" so this was not your garden variety stingray. I also heard that this species of stingray had a stinger that is at most 8" long, and that the stinger poked a hole (and deposited it's venom) in Irwin's heart. That got me to thinking, if the stinger is only 8" long, and his heart is at least 1" beneath his skin, he must have had his chest within 7 inches of this stingray's back. What was he doing, RIDING it? That would be very stupid. And the point in the post above that he or his crew would never put him in a situation that they weren't prepared for can't possibly be true. "Prepared for" in this case would have meant not touching or riding the stingray, and possibly even having well-equipped medical facilities on the boat they were using. They apparently had none of that.

I'm really sad this happened. I didn't watch the guy very often, but always enjoyed the show when I did see it. I agree he was awesome for the cause of wildlife preservation and appreciation. And I agree that this is especially sad for his kids. In his last moment of consciousness, I imagine it crossed his mind that he had taken one-too-many unnecessary risks, and that his kids were going to pay the price for it. Rest in Peace.

[BrianD]

I also heard that this species of stingray had a stinger that is at most 8" long, and that the stinger poked a hole (and deposited it's venom) in Irwin's heart. That got me to thinking, if the stinger is only 8" long, and his heart is at least 1" beneath his skin, he must have had his chest within 7 inches of this stingray's back. What was he doing, RIDING it?

Um, isn't the 8" stinger on the end of its tail? And I don't believe they were filming the stingray for the special, it was hiding in the sand.

[Runtheball]

No, the stinger is at the base of the tail, not at the end of the tail.

[Ksyrup]

I heard on the news that the filming he was doing was for a show called "Earth's most deadly creatures" so this was not your garden variety stingray.

The filming for that couldn't be done due to weather, so he was filming for a children's show, and the stingray wasn't even a subject of what he was filming.

[molson]

I also heard that this species of stingray had a stinger that is at most 8" long, and that the stinger poked a hole (and deposited it's venom) in Irwin's heart. That got me to thinking, if the stinger is only 8" long, and his heart is at least 1" beneath his skin, he must have had his chest within 7 inches of this stingray's back. What was he doing, RIDING it? That would be very stupid.

My guess is that it was mostly burried in the sand, and Irwin didn't see it until he was directly over it.

[oliegirl]

One of the local radio stations had the head vet guy from the Georgia Aquarium on this morning, he said it was a Bull Ray and their wingspan can be 7 feet...and they were speculating, based on reports from the crew that witnessed it, that the stinger was 12 - 16 inches long.

[jbmagic]

Croc Hunter' Widow: Footage Won't Air

'Croc Hunter' Widow: Footage Won't Air
Tuesday September 26 8:38 PM ET

"Crocodile Hunter" Steve Irwin's widow says she hasn't seen the film of her husband's deadly encounter with a stingray and that it won't ever be shown on television.

"What purpose would that serve?" Terri Irwin said in an interview with ABC's Barbara Walters scheduled to air on television Wednesday in the United States and Australia.

Irwin, 44, died Sept. 4 when a stringray's barb pierced his chest while he filmed a TV show on the Great Barrier Reef. A memorial service held for him last week was broadcast on three television networks in Australia.

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Irwin's friend and business partner, John Stainton, has seen the film. He told Walters he never wants to see it again and doesn't want anyone else to see it, either. "It's just a horrible piece of film tape," he said.

American-born Terri Irwin said she was on a research trip in Australia with the couple's two children 8-year-old daughter Bindi and 2-year-old son Bob when her brother-in-law reached her with the news.

"I remember thinking, `Don't say it. Don't say it. Don't say it,'" she said. "I looked out the window, and Bindi was skipping, skipping along outside the window. And I thought, `Oh, my children. He wouldn't have wanted to leave the children.' And I knew it was an accident. It was an accident so stupid. It was like running with a pencil."

She said it's important for her family to continue the work her husband did in teaching the world about wildlife.

"I've always told Bindi, `If anything ever happened to me, I will always watch over you from Heaven,'" she said. "But she always understood because living at a zoo, animals die, she's seen death. She knows what death is."

Irwin told Walters she is getting through her grief "one minute at a time."

She said her son Bob recently took a screwdriver out of the drawer and said he was going to fix the family's motorbike.

"Off he goes, very carefully carrying it like it was a lit candle," she said. "Goes up to the motorbike and starts poking at it. I said, `what are you doing to the motorbike?' He said, `I'm fixing the motorbike so daddy can drive it from heaven.'"

[Glengoyne]

The initial reports indicated it was in the sand, but then what I would classify as more authoritative reports (a colleague who viewed the footage) said that he was swimming next to or above it as it was swimming. The ray, a bull ray(?), suddenly changed course, and whipped with its tail. The ray wasn't some little tiddly wink creature, these things can be feet across. The account mentioned two metres, so it was big. With an 8" stinger at the end of a tail. It was apparently just bad luck that it hit him, let alone buried the thing deep in his chest. The guy described the scene as him getting stabbed, removing the tail/stinger from the wound, and then "he was gone".

He also apparently couldn't film the "deadliest" footage, and was working on scenes for his daughter's show. A segment on Sting Rays. This bit didn't come from the colleague, but I'm pretty sure it was widely reported.

[Glengoyne]

Dola,

That last bit of the article about his son, is heart wrenching.

[nilodor]

Is there any kind of legacy gift happening? I think it would be nice to see a national wildlife preserve or national park created in his memory in australia. I wouldn't want people to forget what he's done for wildlife awareness and preservation.