NWR: AWWWWW Steve Irwin

Steve Irwin the Crocodile Hunter died this morning from a sting ray ( the sting ray stung him right in his heart)
We love u Steve!!!!

NO!!!

DH and I were JUST talking about him - I harbored a secret crush on Steve Irwin for years! I was always so impressed that he could keep himself safe and alive with everything he did - was he filming the episode with the sting ray?

How sad! And his poor wife and child....

This is what i found off of his website....

On 4 September 2006, Steve Irwin was fatally pierced in the chest by a stingray barb, while diving off Queensland's Great Barrier Reef. He had been filming a segment for his daughter Bindi's upcoming television series. Irwin was in the area filming his own documentary, to be called Ocean's Deadliest, but weather had stalled filming. Irwin decided to take the opportunity to film some shallow water shots for his daughter's television programme.[22] Some speculate that a cameraman was in front of the ray when Irwin swam over the animal which may have made the creature feel endangered and threatened. In such a case, the animal reponds by automatically flexing its serrated barb (up to 10' long) upward, as it might to ward off the more common danger of being stepped on. The BBC reported that this was only the second known fatality in Australian history from a stingray attack,[23] while The Age lists it as the third.[22]

Shortly after 11:00 a.m. local time (01:00 UTC), Irwin was filming off the shores of Low Isles, Queensland, near Port Douglas and north of Cairns (map), where he swam closely to the top of a stingray, and the stingray's barb peirced his chest and put a hole into his heart. [24] After he was stung, emergency services were called from Cairns Rescue Base and met Croc One, Irwin’s rescue vessel at Low Isle on the Great Barrier Reef. The Croc One crew performed constant CPR during the thirty-minute dash to Low Isle. [25] The Queensland Rescue Helicopter responded, taking him to Cairns Base Hospital,[26] where Irwin was pronounced dead on arrival at noon.[27] The Queensland Police Service notified his family and released a statement for the media concerning his death. News of his death prompted a public outpouring expressing shock and loss. Several Australian news websites went down due to high web traffic [28] and talk-back radio experienced a high volume of callers expressing their grief [29], commemorating his passion and exuberance. Prime Minister John Howard, among many other politicians, expressed his 'shock and distress' at the death, saying that 'Australia has lost a wonderful and colourful son.” [30] Steve Irwin's body was flown to a morgue in Cairns, where stunned family and friends were gathering on Monday night. His wife Terri was informed of her husband's death while on a walking tour in Tasmania, and returned to the Sunshine Coast with their two children. He was 44 when he died.

2 kids... awwwww - his website is down right now....

thats really sad, he left two children behind

so sad!!!

That is really sad

OMG! I can't believe he died. That's so sad.

I can't beleive it. We all loved him.
It is very SAD!!!
I Feel bad for his wife and 2 children.

I know I just heard on the news, so sad.

my friend is teaching in japan right now and there are a lot of australians in the program with her. she said a lot of them are really happy b/c they hated him. apparently he was from a 'hicky' area and looked down on.

i think that's terrible personally.

My son is going to be sooo upset when I tell him this!! Such a horrible thing!

I definitely shed a tear when I heard. That is so incredibly sad...I enjoyed watching him so much. I don't think there could ever be anyone else so dedicated to animals as he was. There's a whole special on Animal Planet in memory of him.

R.I.P.

I enjoyed watching him....so sad!

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Posted by betani

my friend is teaching in japan right now and there are a lot of australians in the program with her. she said a lot of them are really happy b/c they hated him. apparently he was from a 'hicky' area and looked down on.

i think that's terrible personally.

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I am actually living in Australia right now and he is regarded as a hero here. He is probably getting a state funeral! EVERYONE here is devasted. He brought so much tourism to Australia and did so much for conservation. I was just at his zoo and his zoo is amazing! It is a terrible thing. His poor children and wife.