Steve Irwin dead

I was hearing the news on the radio yesterday. The name was not immediately mentioned, just "Crocodile Hunter". I was thinking, Hey, Crocodile Dundee is dead. That's really sad.

Then, I heard the name, OOOPS this person was the real thing, not the movie hero. Still, ironic that he died from a sting ray's lash.

I was stung once by a jelly fish. Not a happy experience by a long shot.
 
A bull ray barely qualifies as a stingray - it's much bigger than normal, at up to 4.3m long and 350kg. Steve was effectively stabbed to death with a barbed spear.

The latest reports suggest he remained conscious long enough to pull the broken barb out, which undoubtedly made things much worse. Still, if your heart's been pierced, under water, with possible toxins added for good meaure, I doubt that anyone could survive.

It's just amazingly bad luck. A world-renowned expert (Ben Cropp) has only ever had one strike at him. To actually score a direct hit, let alone on one of the most experienced naturalists on the planet with a reputation for staying one step ahead, is just extraordinary. Fate looms large here.
 

I've been nailed twice by Atlantic stingrays --- actually once "nailed" and a couple of years later "sliced."

Both incidents were pretty nasty and required diphtheria / tetanus injections to be safe. The first one required a painful cleaning on a moderately deep stab wound. The second was a nasty laceration -- complete with plenty of my blood in the water before I got the bleeding under control.



 
I had no idea who the guy was.

But apparently there is video of him actually removing the barb from his heart. I imagine that'll be on the internet in a week or so.
 
Mercutio said:
I had no idea who the guy was.

But apparently there is video of him actually removing the barb from his heart. I imagine that'll be on the internet in a week or so.
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Wow. Have you never watched Animal Planet or the Discovery Channel before?
 
Watched the Animal Planet rerun last night of the interview Steve did in June of 2004, really touching stuff.
 
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