Steve Irwin, the Australian animal wrangler who thrilled audiences worldwide with his handling of dangerous creatures in the wild, has reportedly been killed by a stingray.
News accounts from Australia indicate the 44-year-old was stung by a stingray while filming an underwater documentary on the Great Barrier Reef in northeastern Queensland state.
The Australian Broadcasting Corp. said Irwin was diving near Low Isles near the resort town of Port Douglas, some 1,260 miles north of Brisbane.
"Yet this time, Irwin, ever so careful around danger, was taken unawares when, apparently, a stingray he was filming struck out with its tail, the venomous barbs fatally embedding in his chest," reports the Brisbane Courier-Mail.
A helicopter carrying paramedics flew to the site, but were unable to save Irwin.
Irwin is perhaps best known for his enthusiastic style of wildlife watching and his catchphrase of "Crikey!" in his television program "Crocodile Hunter," which has aired around the world on the Discovery channel since its debut in Australia in 1992.
He had become such a part of Americana, that his character was even mocked on an episode of the cartoon series "South Park."Sad news. I rarely saw his show, but he was a big favorite of kids. It's going to be difficult for many parents to explain this.
I think most people would have given you odds that Irwin would one day be killed by an animal, but I don't think anybody would have predicted that a stingray would get him.
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