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Darwin Awards
2006 Slush Pile

This item was recently submitted by a reader.
Should I include it in the archive?
Vote to tell me what *you* think!

Steve Irwin killed by stinray

2006 Reader Submission
Pending Acceptance

Steve Irwin, the Australian television personality and conservationist known as the "Crocodile Hunter," was killed Monday by a stingray while filming off the Great Barrier Reef. He was 44.

Irwin was at Batt Reef, off the remote coast of northeastern Queensland state, shooting a segment for a series called "Ocean's Deadliest" when he swam too close to one of the stingrays, which have a poisonous barb on their tails, said his colleague, John Stainton.

"He came on top of the stingray and the stingray's barb went up and into his chest and put a hole into his heart," said Stainton, who was on board Irwin's boat at the time.

Crew members aboard the boat, Croc One, called emergency services in the nearest city, Cairns, and administered cardiopulmonary resuscitation as they rushed Irwin to nearby Low Isle to meet a rescue helicopter. Medical workers pronounced Irwin dead when they arrived a short time later, Stainton said.

Irwin was famous for his enthusiasm for wildlife and his catchword "Crikey!" in his television program "Crocodile Hunter." First broadcast in Australia in 1992, the program was picked up by the Discovery network, catapulting Irwin to international celebrity.

He rode his image into a feature film, "The Crocodile Hunters: Collision Course," which was released in 2002, and developed his wildlife park, Australia Zoo, into a tourist attraction.

Irwin, who made a trademark of hovering dangerously close to untethered crocodiles and leaping onto their backs, spoke in rapid-fire bursts with a thick Australian accent and was almost never seen without his uniform of khaki shorts and shirt and heavy boots.

Australian officials sought Irwin out for photo opportunities and to promote Australia internationally.

His public image was dented, however, in 2004 when he caused an uproar by holding his infant son in one arm while feeding large crocodiles inside a zoo pen. Irwin claimed at the time that there was no danger to the child, and the authorities declined to charge Irwin with 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.

Stingrays have a serrated, toxin-loaded barb, or spine, on the top of their tail. The barb, which can be up to 10 inches long, flexes if a ray is frightened. Stings, which can occur when people step on a ray, can be excruciating but are rarely fatal, said a University of Queensland marine neuroscientist, Shaun Collin.

Collin said he suspected Irwin died because the barb pierced under his ribcage and directly into his heart. "It was extraordinarily bad luck. It's not easy to get spined by a stingray and to be killed by one is very rare," Collin said

Submitted on 09/04/2006

Submitted by: Erin VanVoorhis
Reference: Associated Press, 9/04/06

Copyright © 2006 DarwinAwards.com

>> Moderator Scores <<

James said:
Definitely Toss: No Self-Selection
Thanks for submitting, Erin, we DO appreciate it! The latest news is that video evidence of Irwin's final moments proves he did NOT provoke the stingray into stinging him. In the end, Irwin probably swam too close to the stingray, but that alone doesn't constitute DA grade stupidity, IMO. I will stick by my guns here and vote no self-selection.


Sheryl said:
Definitely Toss: No Self-Selection


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