Steve Irwin — RIP

Steve “Crocodile Hunter” Irwin died in a freak accident.

Australian naturalist and television personality Steve Irwin has been killed by a stingray during a diving expedition off the Australian coast.

Mr Irwin, 44, died after being struck in the chest by the stingray’s barb while he was filming a documentary in Queensland’s Great Barrier Reef.

. . . The stingray is a flat, triangular-shaped fish, commonly found in tropical waters.

It gets its name from the razor-sharp barb at the end of its tail, coated in toxic venom, which the animal uses to defend itself with when it feels threatened.

Attacks on humans are a rarity – only one other person is known to have died in Australia from a stingray attack, at St Kilda, Melbourne in 1945.

I enjoyed watching his show on TV and admired his commitment to the preservation of wildlife and his opposition to any kind of hunting.

It is one of those things that I am going to remember for a long while. My month long stay in Sydney is almost over. I had just finished dinner and switched on the TV and the channel that the TV was tuned on to was just getting started with the news headlines. I could hardly believe it. Life is a random draw and you never know when your number is up.

Steve will remain a great Australian hero.

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Author: Atanu Dey

Economist.

5 thoughts on “Steve Irwin — RIP”

  1. Just caught this on slashdot. Was always expecting this though i suspected that one of the mambas whould get him. Still will miss the madman… The world needs more people like steve.

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  2. Dear Atanu,

    A classic case of life being a random draw (specially given the rarity of stingray fatalities). He lived fewer years than many but had the honor of dying with his boots on. When your work conincides with what you love, your life is far richer than those of rest.

    Sharad

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  3. Immence sadness engulfed me when I heard about the death of one of the most loved personalities of wild life. my heart goes out to Terry and her childern. He lived life to the full and died the way he would have liked to die…..in harness.Such men come like a meteor, light up the world and vanish. Please God send him back.

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  4. A Hero I must say
    a person who will be remembered not only for his charming personality but also for his love for animals…
    a person of great character
    the whole world will miss this hero.
    may god give strength to his family to go through this loss which they have suffered.

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