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...Irwin was in the area to film pieces for a show called "The Ocean's Deadliest"...

"He came over the top of a stingray that was buried in the sand, and the barb came up and hit him in the chest," Stainton said.

"Steve really knew what he was doing. He was one of the finest reptile people in the world. He knew more about reptiles than anybody did. He was raised that way," said Hanna.

Shortly after 11:00 a.m. local time (01:00 UTC) on 4 September 2006, Irwin was fatally pierced in the chest by a short-tail stingray barb while diving in Batt Reef (part of the Great Barrier Reef), off the coast of Port Douglas in Queensland, Australia. Irwin was in the area filming his own documentary, to be called The Ocean's Deadliest, but weather had stalled filming. Irwin decided to take the opportunity to film some shallow water shots for a segment in the television program his daughter Bindi was hosting,[29] when, according to his friend and colleague John Stainton, he swam too close to one of the animals. "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 the Croc One.

The events were caught on camera, and the footage was handed to the Queensland Police.[30] After reviewing the footage of the incident and speaking to the cameraman who recorded it, marine documentary filmmaker and former spearfisherman Ben Cropp speculated that the stingray "felt threatened because Steve was alongside and there was the cameraman ahead." In such a case, the stingray responds by automatically flexing the serrated barb on its tail up to a maximum of 25 cm (10 in) of length. Cropp said Irwin had accidentally boxed the animal in. "It stopped and twisted and threw up its tail with the spike, and it caught him in the chest. It's a defensive thing. It's like being stabbed with a dirty dagger." The stinging of Irwin by the bull ray was "a one-in-a-million thing," Cropp told Time magazine. "I have swum with many rays, and I have only had one do that to me."[31] Immediately after the attack, Irwin was shown on tape pulling the barb out, before losing consciousness. This was confirmed by his colleague John Stainton. [32] It is thought, in the absence of a coroner's report, that either the toxins of the barb caused Irwin to die of an apparent cardiac arrest[33] or that he died quickly as a result of a punctured aorta.[34]

Crew members aboard his boat called the emergency services in the nearest city of Cairns and administered CPR as they rushed the boat to nearby Lowe Isle to meet a rescue helicopter. Medical staff pronounced Irwin dead when they arrived a short time later.[29] According to Dr. Ed O'Loughlin, who treated Irwin, "it became clear fairly soon that he had non-survivable injuries." "He had a penetrating injury to the left front of his chest. He had lost his pulse and wasn't breathing."[35]

Irwin's body was flown to a morgue in Cairns. His wife was on a walking tour in Cradle Mountain-Lake St Clair National Park in Tasmania at the time, and returned via a private plane from Devonport to the Sunshine Coast with their two children.[29]

This was only the third known fatality in Australian history from a stingray attack, and the first since 1945.[36] As of 1996, only seventeen worldwide fatalities had been recorded,[37] and it is believed to be the only fatal attack ever captured on film.[38]

The Queensland Police released a statement for the media concerning his death after notifying his family.[39] News of his death prompted a public outpouring expressing shock and loss. Australian Prime Minister John Howard expressed his "shock and distress" at the death, saying that "Australia has lost a wonderful and colourful son."[40] Queensland Premier Peter Beattie extended the offer of a state funeral to Irwin's family, commenting in a Channel Seven television interview that Irwin "will be remembered as not just a great Queenslander, but a great Australian".[41] Beattie also stated a permanent memorial might be constructed in honour of Irwin, though the details of the structure would depend on Irwin's wife.[42] Several Australian news websites went down because of high web traffic[43] and for the first time the top ten stories on http://www.theage.com.au were sweeped by one topic.[44] Talk-back radio experienced a high volume of callers expressing their grief.[45]

The U.S. feed of the Animal Planet cable television channel aired a special tribute to Steve Irwin at 6:00pm EST on Monday, 4 September 2006.[46] The president of the Discovery Network, Billy Campbell, released a statement, saying:[47]

Steve Irwin
Our entire company is deeply saddened by the tragic and sudden loss of Steve Irwin, the Crocodile Hunter. Steve was beloved by millions of fans and animal lovers around the world and was one of our planet's most passionate conservationists. He has graced our air since October 1996 and was essential in building Animal Planet into a global brand.

Steve Irwin

Animal Planet will rename the garden space in front of Discovery's world headquarters in Silver Spring, Montgomery County, Maryland, to the "Steve Irwin Memorial Sensory Garden." They are also looking at the creation of the Steve Irwin Crocodile Hunter Fund, which they will call "The Crikey Fund" which will "allow people from across the globe to make contributions in Steve's honor to support wildlife protection, education and conservation."[47]

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