STEVE IRWIN KILLED BY STINGRAY

Wild and adverture seeker Steve Irwin was killed by a stingray at Batt reef off the remote coast of northeastern Queensland state. He was shooting a segment for a series called " Ocean's Deadliest". He came on top of a stingray and the stingray's barb went up and into his chest and put a hole into his heart. Crew members aboard the boat, Croc One, called emergency services in the nearest city, Cairns, and administered CPR as they rushed the boat to nearby Low Isle to meet a rescue helicopter. Medical staff pronounced Irwin dead when they arrived a short time later. Stingrays have a serrated, toxin-loaded barb, or spine, on the top of their tail. The barb, which can be up to 10 inches long, flexes if a ray is frightened. Stings usually occur to people when they step on or swim too close to a ray and can be excruciatingly painful but are rarely fatal. He is survived by his wife Terri and daughter Bindi Sue 8 and son Bob 2.