Steve Irwin R.I.P.
At 6.30 a.m. this morning my sister Melinda called me from Australia to tell me Steve Irwin had died. She’s not in the habit of ringing me every time an Australian icon passes away. It’s just that Steve Irwin was my dad’s boss.
My dad is 66 and instead of retiring he took up the post of plumber at Australia Zoo. He oversaw the plumbing needs of the Crocoseum and the new tiger enclosure. He made sure the drainage on Lima Island was up to scratch. And he appears in an episode of Crocodile Hunter when a leaking tap in one of the crocodile pits needs fixing. Steve Irwin distracted the crocodile and a little bloke who looks a bit like Willie Nelson rushed in with his monkeywrench.
My dad is not an emotional man but he is devastated. He said it was like a terrorist bomb had gone off at the zoo. Everyone is crying and the media are camped out front getting ‘reaction’ from staff as they leave.
Dad liked Steve Irwin. He doesn’t like poseurs but with Steve he said that what you saw was what you got. He was exactly the same in real life as he was on television.
The media here in Britain are already getting self-righteous. They think Steve Irwin should have been more like David Attenborough. The animals should have been the star, not Steve. But I wonder how many kids would have watched the shows and got excited about animals if Steve hadn’t been himself?
Anyway, I just want to raise a heartfelt ‘Crikey!’ to Steve and his family and remember a guy who was a great ambassador for my country.
The Blog!
September 4th, 2006 at 10:27 am
That sucks! And it’s startling on a personal mortality level too–here’s this guy who had all this training for dealing with wildlife, and took all these calculated risks all the time. And then there’s this stingray, and this highly trained professional is paddling along like everyone does and then this random accident, and wham, no more Steve. It reminds me of that country song, which I assume is American but actually I only heard it in a taxi in Ho Chi Minh City–where people take all these risks and then sit under a tree and get killed by falling coconuts. I guess the moral is, you never know so forget the to-do list and enjoy life.
I have to go work all day and stare at the computer now. I don’t think I took away quite the lesson I was supposed to take from this.
September 4th, 2006 at 12:33 pm
Crikey indeed!
I have to say, you were the first person I thought of when I heard the story on the news. Well, that’s not necessarily true, your Dad was the first person I thought of. I remember you telling us that he worked at the Zoo.
We’re all in a state of shock in our house, the terrible irony is that he is known as the crocodile hunter but it was indeed something else that took him.
My condolences go out to your Dad and to the Irwin family. Its a sad day for Australia and Australians alike.
Millie
September 4th, 2006 at 1:40 pm
I’m devastated as well. Such a shame to lose a man that was idolised by so many and truly believed in what he was doing. He has made a huge impact on my life and, without him, I’m sure I would not be the croc and snake enthusiast that I am today. I feel so sad for his family in what must be a most difficult time for them. Steve Irwin is a legend and I will never forget him.
September 4th, 2006 at 2:13 pm
My condolences, but he was, -pardon-, he “work” with the animals as an stupid and modern “homo sapiens sapiens”, every time with stress and agressivity. Way out: natural response from the nature.
September 4th, 2006 at 2:51 pm
Yes, crikey indeed. Very sad news.
At first I thought it was a joke when my workmate told me about it this afternoon. Everyone was shocked. news.com.au sure got the hammering today.
September 4th, 2006 at 8:11 pm
I did a bit of work experience a few years back for a film company in Bristol who produced his “specials” at the time. They, like your dad Peter, said the exact same thing, they loved him and what you saw was definatly what you got!
God bless you Steve…….you were a “Little (big) Ripper”
September 4th, 2006 at 10:18 pm
Sad news indeed.
His producer was on TV saying that Steve died doing what he loved. True, but he was also a father with a young family so I doubt it was how he would have liked to have gone. But people die everyday, some in the most horrific of circumstances. We only have to watch the horrors of Afghanistan and Iraq (and Jordan for that matter) to realise that. But it’s a sad loss all the same, especially when there is so much death at the moment.
Whether you agreed with the way his shows were produced or not (lets not forget that much of his wealth went towards animal welfare), like you said Peter, how many kids would have the interest in animals that they have today if it weren’t for Steve Irwin. Crocodile Hunter.
September 6th, 2006 at 7:44 am
Hi everyone ,all i can say is wow what a guy i grew up on the Sunshine Coast and still am here. My brother used to serve them as in steve and waz fuel and they would tell him there of to the north again too get some more crocks these guy where about 27 then and we used to goto the zoo when it was nothing. An amazing man and a great ambassedor for australia he called a spade a spade , good luck in heaven steve. You will be missed by many . Go with our hearts . jason
September 14th, 2006 at 12:27 pm
I was lucky enough to go to Australia zoo in January this year while on holiday from the UK. We were even luckier that Steve was doing the show in the crocoseum. I just count myself lucky I was there to see the great man doing his show live and you could tell how much he enjoyed it. What a top bloke and will never be forgotten. Big loss. Hope Terry can carry on doing the big mans work.
September 21st, 2006 at 12:54 pm
I was travelling when I heard the news, or some of it, and spent ages trying to find out the full story. It’s a major shame, he seemed like a nice bloke and a true down to earth Aussie. It’s his family I really feel for.