I just loaded up BBC Radio 1 to catch the Chris Moyles morning show, and was a bit surprised to hear them talking about the death of Steve 'Crocodile Hunter' Irwin. I quickly went to BBC News and found the article confirming that he died from a stingray 'sting' to the chest (into the heart) while filming a documentary on the Great Barrier Reef with his daughter.
While, after Steve's many years working with deadly animals, I'm not totally shocked to hear the news, but I was beginning to think he was nearly invincible and would live forever, taunting dangerous animals and insects until I grew old.
It's definately sad, as he was a very passionate environmentalist and conservationist who over the past decade and a half got many people interested in wildlife again, and who used much of his own money to help protect wildlife areas in Australia. My condolences to Mr. Irwin's family and friends.
3 replies on “R.I.P. Steve Irwin”
I was a little surprised to hear the news, myself. I was thinking – as you mentioned – that the guy was invincible. Sad news.
He crossed some major safety lines though. I read that the entire thing was filmed ( it was for a documentary) including him pulling out the 37″ barb from his chest or wherever from the stingray. Though it was the venom that killed him, that’s CRAZY!! Ok, all 37″ didn’t go in, but still.
M.
miranda: well, the barb of a stingray is typically 4″ to 6″ long, and they very rarely attack, only when threatened (according to Wikipedia, the tail with the barb is much a reflex action much like fight or flight, where it just happens whether the threat is real or imagined). According to the film crew who was there, there wasn’t anything specific done to provoke such a reaction, so it really was a freak thing. Not to say that Mr. Irwin hadn’t been provoking animals for years, most far more deadly than a stingray, but in this case it does seem pretty freak. If the barb hadn’t pierced his chest and into his heart, he’d have probably been OK, it’s extemely rare someone dies from a stingray.