Shortly after 11:00 a.m. AEST (01:00 UTC) on 4 September 2006, Irwin was fatally pierced in the chest by a stingray barb whilst snorkelling at the Great Barrier Reef, at Batt Reef, which is located off the coast of Port Douglas in Queensland. 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,^[33] 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 a copy of the footage was handed to the Queensland Police.^[34] 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 to danger by automatically flexing the serrated barb on its tail (which can measure up to 25 cm or about 10 inches in length) in an upward motion.

Cropp said Irwin had accidentally boxed in the animal. "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."^[35]

Some reports have claimed that immediately after being stabbed, Irwin pulled the barb out before losing consciousness a short time later. Irwin's colleague John Stainton confirmed this account,^[34], though it was denied before because he had not seen the video (he wasn't underwater).^[36] It is thought, in the absence of a coroner's report, that a combination of the toxins and the puncture wound from the barb caused Irwin to die of cardiac arrest, with most damage being inflicted by tears to arteries or other main blood vessels.^[37] It is also possible that he died quickly as a result of a punctured aorta.^[38] Until the coroner's report is released, however, the precise cause of Irwin's death remains conjecture.

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 the Low Islets to meet a rescue helicopter. Medical staff pronounced Irwin dead when they arrived a short time later.^[33] 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."^[39]

Irwin's body was flown to a morgue in Cairns. His wife, Terri Irwin, 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.^[33]

As of 1996, only seventeen worldwide fatalities had been recorded due to stingrays, ^[34] and the attack on Irwin is believed to be the only fatality from a stingray ever captured on film.^[40]

Recent information has surfaced in which the footage of Steve Irwin's death may be released and broadcast on television. ^[41] However the opposite has also been stated. Irwin's friend and manager John Stainton said to CNN's Larry King "[The tape] should be destroyed". ^[42]

Reaction

News of his death prompted a public outpouring expressing shock and loss in just about every media outlet worldwide (particularly online). Australian Prime Minister John Howard expressed his "shock and distress" at the death, saying that "Australia has lost a wonderful and colourful son."^[43] Queensland Premier Peter Beattie commented in a Channel Seven television interview that Irwin "will be remembered as not just a great Queenslander, but a great Australian".^[44] Several Australian news websites went down because of high web traffic and for the first time the top 10 list of most viewed stories for Fairfax Digital news sites were swept by one topic.^[45] Talk-back radio experienced a high volume of callers expressing their grief.^[46]

The U.S. feed of the Animal Planet cable television channel aired a special tribute to Steve Irwin that started on Monday, 4 September 2006. The tribute continued with the Animal Planet channel showing highlights of Irwin's more than 200 appearances on Discovery networks shows.^[47] The president of the Discovery Network, Billy Campbell, released a statement, saying:^[48]

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.

On the evening of his death, Enough Rope re-broadcast an interview between Irwin and Andrew Denton originally broadcast in 2003. CNN showed a repeat of his interview on Larry King Live, originally recorded in 2004. The Australian federal parliament opened on 5 September 2006 with condolence speeches by both the Prime Minister John Howard and the Leader of the Opposition Kim Beazley. The Seven Network aired a television memorial show as a tribute to Irwin on 5 September 2006,^[49], as did the Nine Network on 6 September 2006. Also on the evening of his death Triple M shock jock Spoonman called Irwin a "wanker" on air but later apologised for his comments in an online editorial called Humble Pie[1].

Irwin was very popular in the United States, tributes flooded U.S. talk shows following Irwin's death.^[50] Jay Leno delivered a tribute to Irwin, describing him as a great ambassador of Australia. Irwin appeared on Leno's talk show on more than ten occasions. There were also tributes on Live with Regis & Kelly and Barbara Walters' The View; on the former show, Kelly Ripa came close to tears with her praise of Irwin. ^[50] The View's co-host Rosie O'Donnell described informing her son of Irwin's death as if Superman had died for him.^[50] Professional wrestler Matt Striker made light of the incident — joking about stingrays on ECW and prompting an apology from WWE Chairman Vince McMahon.^[51]

Hundreds of people visited Australia Zoo to pay tribute to the deceased entertainer and conservationist. The day after his death, the volume of people visiting the zoo to pay their respects affected traffic so much that police reduced the speed limit around the Glass House Mountains Road and told motorists to expect delays.^[52]

Amid the outpouring of public grief, Germaine Greer published a criticism making statements such as "the animal world has finally taken its revenge" and referring to Irwin’s rebuttal to criticism as "That sort of self-delusion is what it takes to be a 'real Aussie larrikin'".^[53] The Australian media reacted with distaste to the article amid the praise offered for Irwin.^[54] Queensland Premier Peter Beattie called Greer's comments "insensitive and, frankly, stupid," and Australian Shadow Foreign Affairs Minister Kevin Rudd described Greer's comments as "gratuitous, politically correct claptrap."^[55][56]

However some defended Greer's commments, such as Dr.Clive Hamilton, the executive director of the Australia Institute, who, writing in The Sydney Morning Herald accuses some Australians of being dishonest in their grief and admitted that whilst "Irwin was generous in using the wealth he accumulated for private conservation purposes, he was a crude presenter of nature". ^[57]

Funeral and memorials

Queensland Premier Peter Beattie extended the offer of a state funeral to Irwin's family, an honour also agreed to by Prime Minister John Howard. Steve Irwin's father, Bob Irwin, however, stated that his son would not have wanted such an honour, and wanted to be remembered as an "ordinary bloke".^[58] Bob said that there would be a private funeral — for only family members and close friends — which will be held within a week. He also commented that there would be a public memorial service held within the next two weeks, so that the public would be able to attend. Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane has been reported as the likely venue for the public memorial.^[59] Beattie stated he would honour the decision of the Irwin family regarding their arrangements.

Several permanent memorials for Irwin have already been considered or announced. Premier Peter Beattie suggested a national park be named after Irwin or a permanent memorial might be constructed in his honour, though the details of the structure would depend on Irwin's family.^[52] Animal Planet will rename the garden space in front of Discovery's world headquarters in Silver Spring, Maryland, USA, to the "Steve Irwin Memorial Sensory Garden."^[48] They are also looking at the creation of the Steve Irwin Crocodile Hunter Fund, which they will call "The Crikey Fund" which will "provide a way for people from across the globe to make contributions in Steve's honor to support wildlife protection, education and conservation."^[48]