STEVE DIDN’T HAVE TO DIE
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When a new report released late last month sensationally claimed Steve Irwin “didn’t have to die”, a heartbroken Terri Irwin crumpled in shock.
To add to her distress, the doctor making the claim had viewed bootleg footage of Steve’s agonising death on September 4, 2006 – a video that may now be made public if the price is right.
The Irwins have long vowed never to allow the footage to be aired, and news that there is now a copy in circulation has left the family heartbroken.
As has the claim by Us-based Dr Gabe Mirkin that Steve unwittingly hastened his demise by yanking out the stingray barb that pierced his heart that day. “The stingray tail effectively acted as a plug, and the second he removed it he bled to death,” Dr Mirkin said. “Steve Irwin didn’t have to die.”
Steve was filming on the Great Barrier Reef when a massive stingray stabbed wildly at him with its serrated tail, before one hit sank deep into his chest. Steve, then 44, yanked out the barb and quickly bled to death.
Now, with the claims Steve’s death could’ve been avoided, insiders say Terri’s heart is breaking all over again. “Terri is going through hell right now,” a friend tells Woman’s Day. “It’s always difficult around the anniversary of his death, but this has made it harder than usual. “The truth is, Steve was so badly wounded nothing could’ve saved him, given the remote area where it happened.” Terri, 53, is now vowing to stamp out the rumours and hunt down those who could profit from the footage. “Terri will never forget the moment she told Bindi and Bob their dad had gone,” says the insider. “Years later she explained to Bindi in detail about how it all happened, and then she had to have that same conversation with Bob when he was old enough.
“That’s why no one is going to rewrite history when it comes to Steve. And nothing is going to tarnish his memory.”