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Croc Hunter Steve Irwin Dead


katie_sane

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Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin dead

September 04, 2006 02:14pm

THE Crocodile Hunter, Steve Irwin, is dead.

He was killed in a freak accident in Cairns, police sources said.

It is understood he was killed by a stingray barb that went through his chest.

He was swimming off the Low Isles at Port Douglas filming an underwater documentary when the tragedy occured.

Ambulance officers confirmed they attended a reef fatality this morning at Batt Reef off Port Douglas.

Irwin's body is being flown to Cairns.

It is believed Mr Irwin's American-born wife Terri is trekking on Cradle Mountain in Tasmania and is yet to be told of her husband's death.

Mr Irwin - known worldwide as the Crocodile Hunter - is famous for his enthusiasm for wildlife and his catchcry "Crikey!".

The father of two's Crocodile Hunter program was first broadcast in 1992 and has been shown around the world on cable network Discovery.

He has also starred in movies and has developed the Australia Zoo wildlife park, north of Brisbane, which was started by his parents Bob and Lyn Irwin.

A Tourism Queensland spokeswoman today said the death was shocking and paid tribute to Irwin's "enormous contribution" to his adopted state.

Louise Yates said it was impossible to quantify how much Mr Irwin had meant to the Queensland tourism industry.

"I don't think we could even estimate how much he brought us through his personality and his profile and his enthusiasm about Queensland," she said.

"It would be difficult to estimate how much he was worth. And it would be difficult to underestimate."

She said Mr Irwin had been a larger-than-life ambassador.

"It's not just what he brought but what he took with him when he travelled, his passion."

Australia Zoo, on southeast Queensland's Sunshine Coast, employs more than 500 people and attracts thousands of visitors every day.

But Ms Yates said it would be "unfair and unjust" to put a dollar value on Irwin's worth to the state, because of how much he had given.

With The Courier Mail and AAP

Source: NEWS.com.au

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Crikey! Legions of Salties will shed a tear, over not having had a chance to take a piece out of their most bothersome tormentor. Australia's wildlife will collectively breathe a sigh of relief at not being rousted, handled, and thrust at a camera lens any more. But there are children to carry on. Beware "Son/Daughter of The Crocodile Hunter!" For the moment, will Nigel Marvin risk life and limb to count annual rings on a Saltie's tooth? Right now, Steve Irwin is arm wrestling John Cameron Swayze for a spot on "Heavenly Crocs" on The Gaiea Network, overseen by Roy Chapman Andrews. Hoist the largest can of Foster's Lager you can find, and be sure to yell "Crikey!"

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It is sad . Despite occasionally being annoyed by what seemed like too much childish enthusiam ( in a genre that , traditionally , was stoic and scientific ) , I mostly enjoyed his programs and admired his guts in getting up close and personal with the animals ( though he did leave you wondering , at times , how close to the line he was getting between his skill and knowledge and outright risk taking ) .

He'll definately be remembered for popularizing the ' hands-on' style for nature show presenters , his infectious good spirit and optimism , his genuine admiration for the creatures he worked with , and will be greatly missed as a TV personality .

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It's one of those things you didn't think would happen. I am not a regular watcher of Croc Hunter but this really really does come as a rude shock. it's difficult to believe because though you always knew what he was doing was dangerous, you always have such complete trust in him and the fact that nothing bad could possibly happen. And the whole family had such a lovely relationship, that the incident becomes even sadder.

Re-reading the headline and the article, I still cannot imagine this.

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Another surprising bit I just heard from a CNN interview with the producer, who was onsight, stated he had simply swum over a stingray that was nestled in the sand when it reacted and struck him - no fancy handling of the creature or anything like that , as one might've imagined . Infact the ray wasn't even of interest in the documentary being made ... As well , only 3 people have even been killed in Austrailian waters in a like manner before . A small mercy was the report that he never regained consciousness or had a panicked struggle for his life after being taken aboard and during the efforts to get him to the hospital .

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His handling of some of those animals seemed, to me, to be on the rough side. I've been to many zoos, wild life sanctuaries, and talked with some zoologists at the university who saw his show as sensationalistic. Nothing wrong with that and it's not that I think he deserved to get accidentally killed, but wild animals do unexpected things and, combined with some dangerous handling, they tend to react defensively - right down to the "tame" critters. Jacques Cousteau is someone who also devoted his entire life to teaching the world about marine animals and he lived to old age. I wonder what he would say about this tragic incident.

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As someone I heard on the radio this morning pointed out, Steve Irwin was our most genuinely Aussie celebrity who was famous overseas. You can't really call any of our actors, musicians etc. really obviously Australian, but Steve's antics truly embodied the nature of great "Aussie Battlers" (as our politicians call them). His achievements in promoting animal welfare and tourism are so great, they are almost incomparable with anyone elses. We will definitely miss him.

However, I must point out that Katie was absolutely correct - absolutely nobody in Australia drinks Fosters. We export it because we don't like it. :P

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I never much cared for Irwin...especially after seeing his idiotic stunt of dangling his infant son while taunting a crocodile with food.

Still, he was passionate about his work and loved wildlife. It'll be his legacy.

It's very sad that he died the way he did. I feel sorry for that and for his family.

It seems he had legions of fans. My condolences to all of you.

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Steve Irwin tributes mount as shocking video revealed

I wasn't the biggest Steve Irwin fan either, but I did think he was a great personality and the kind of ambassador that made Australia proud - a family man who was a larrikin, a genuine bloke, a hard worker who stood up for what he believed in.

He did great things to promote conservation and tourism in Australia.

I also feel terrible for his wife Terri and children Bindi and Bob.

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I always thought that he would go via a croc, if anything. I do feel sad for his wife and children, but last night on the news, a friend of his said he died doing what he loved.

Even though he was a bit kooky and I thought he did things a little dangerously, he was entertaining. I grew up watching Jacques Cousteau and Marlon Perkins and while they were educational and interesting, as a kid, I probably would have enjoyed a little kookiness.

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I've long been a fan of Steve Irwin's. He was truly someone the kids could look up to. Even with the 'baby with the croc' incident. I don't think he had his son in any kind of danger whatsoever, but the juxtaposition of baby and croc freaked a lot of people out. You never read about him and impaired driving, or drugs, spousal abuse, throwing phones at desk clerks, molesting kids, none of that crap. He was the real deal. I am saddened that he has passed, however, when you pass doing something you love, well, that's consolation. He didn't languish away in a hospital, and didn't suffer. And probably didn't know what an ISP was, and wrestled crocs not virus. I applaud his life and work.

Ken.

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He was a good man honestley. I always loved doing his voice! Just outta the blue id start narrarating life in his voice.

I feel bad that, as close as he has gotten to death in his lifetime, he is done in by a stingray. I feel bad of course for his family, and his very young kids for never having a chance to know him, but i feel he will go down in History.

OH CRIKEY!

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