wow - i always figured he would die 'in-action' so to speak but to die from a stingray barb puncture to the heart...wow

I heard they have it filmed. I wonder how long untill someone posts something on youtube?

The guy was a legend, and I know many disliked him/his style - but personally i found his near boundless energy and love for his life/work to be incredibly heartwarming and reassuring in a modern day society. He was informative, exciting, passionate and enthusiastic to an incredible degree - and definately one of a few people i really wish I could have met and had a chat with. He also appeared to not have a bad bone or thought in his body, which is also something very rare these days. An all round good guy.

What a shame such a awful event occured - if that barb hadn't hit his heart, he'd have lived. He obviously didn't know the stingrays as well as he knew his snakes/crocs - to tragic consequences. My thoughts are for his family and co-workers though - their worlds must have just literally fallen around them.

He has managed to do one thing 99.99% of us will never accomplish - live on in the hearts of millions and millions for all the RIGHT reasons.
What a guy, what a loss

He lost my vote after he dangled his child over a crocodile.But anyways I thought it was bound to happen,and I do feel sorry for his family.He was a good guy for helping kids learn about animals while having fun too.

I will admit the guy is a living legend. The sheer amound of publicity the guy got around the world is incredible (It is a fact that many foreigners, typically americans, are curious as to if all australians act like him. for the record, we dont )

Although he may be dead, the legacy will live on. His death has been likened to the demise of Princess Diana, never to be forgotten.

R.I.P. Irwin. Thanks for putting Australia on the map for everyone.

I don't know what to say about this. I was up early in the mmorning flipping through channels and I saw, for a half-a-second, a clip of him on a news channel, but I disregarded it. Then I came on the internet and saw the story. I had to do a double-take and I was like "What? That can't be right." Really shocking too me, this is the first iconic person that has really felt like a loss to me. At least he died doing what he loved best.

i heard about this before work this morning i always thought he'd be munched by a gator or bit by a snake, i guess it's better he didn't at least they can bury him i don't think an alligator would sit still long enough to have it's stomach pumped. he was the one who decided to risk his life

I was horrified when I heard. I watched his show every Saturday for Years growing up. I read, (Dont quote me on this) that the Australian government is putting together a "Crikey" fund to help small zoos, ect. It sounds like a nice idea. Well, I'll never hear the words "Dangea Dangea Dangea" quite the same way again.

May the Ships of the Black Fleet escort thee to thy rest.

my kids loved watching this guy, and although he wasn't exactly my cup of tea, I respect all the conservation work that he's done and his willingness to stick two fingers up to bureaucracy to protect endangered species.

Some Australians might have found his "battling ocker" persona embarassing but in the rest of the world we actually quite like it - Crocodile Dundee wasn't a hit for nothing, you know! and Irwin tapped into that selfsame empathy.

Although i found myself disagreeing with some of his non-conservation public statements, especially his occasional forays into poltical comment, that's not really what the man was about; the entire world loved him for the entertainment and education he provided, and there's no denying his bravery, even if you were to consider it foolhardiness (which i don't, as he obviously knew what he was doing)

however, i was under the impression that it was Captain Cook who put Australia on the map. Or was it Skippy?

Poor Steve... He always seemed so indestructible. :/ He genuinely enjoyed his work and made it enjoyable for others as well, which is more than most of the people in this world can say. If he'd lived, I'm sure he'd have been back on his feet no more than a week later doing something even more dangerous with a huge smile and the hands-on attitude that was his trademark.

Crikey!

his last words were probly criky this bloody this is gorgious

I thought he was like incapacitated when he died? however it was, He was a great guy, and my neighbor had him on places to go, do, and people to see before she died.

This is a weird death but sad .