| 19th October 2006 01:30 PM |
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| LadyJane |
Fla. boater stabbed in chest by stingray Thu Oct 19, 9:21 AM ET
LIGHTHOUSE POINT, Fla. - An 81-year-old boater was in critical condition Thursday after a stingray flopped onto his boat and stabbed him, leaving a foot-long barb in his chest, authorities said.
"It was a freak accident," said Lighthouse Point acting fire Chief David Donzella. "It's very odd that the thing jumped out of the water and stung him. We still can't believe it."
Fatal stingray attacks like the one that killed "Crocodile Hunter" Steve Irwin last month are rare, marine experts say. Rays reflexively deploy a sharp spine in their tails when frightened, but the venom coating the barb usually causes just a painful sting for humans.
James Bertakis of Lighthouse Point was on the water with his granddaughter and a friend Wednesday when the stingray flopped onto the boat and stung Bertakis. The women steered the boat to shore and called 911.
Surgeons were able to remove some of the barb, and Bertakis, who also suffered a collapsed lung, underwent surgery late Wednesday and early Thursday, the Miami Herald reported on its web site.
Ellen Pikitch, a professor of marine biology and fisheries at the University of Miami, who has been studying stingrays for decades, said they are generally docile.
"Something like this is really, really extraordinarily rare," she said. "Even when they are under duress, they don't usually attack."
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LJ.
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| 19th October 2006 01:32 PM |
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| voodoopug |
This is tragic for the family of the victim as well as Steve the Croc Hunters family.....
I cannot stress enough....fish, and most sea creatures are threats to us all and must be avoided/eliminated! |
| 19th October 2006 01:40 PM |
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| LadyJane |
Pug..just curious..have you ever watched Jaws???
I don't think you could handle it.
LJ. |
| 19th October 2006 01:41 PM |
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| Dan |
quote:
voodoopug wrote:
I cannot stress enough....fish, and most sea creatures are threats to us all and must be avoided/eliminated!
I feel the same way about dogs. |
| 19th October 2006 01:41 PM |
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| Sir Stonesalot |
No. Do not eliminate sea creatures. Just don't play with them. Duh.
Besides, I like sushi. No sea critters = no sushi for SS.
That would cause me undue stress. |
| 19th October 2006 01:55 PM |
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| throbby |
I'd say that judging by the theme this week you have ways of dealing with undue stress.
[Edited by throbby] |
| 19th October 2006 01:55 PM |
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| voodoopug |
quote:
LadyJane wrote:
Pug..just curious..have you ever watched Jaws???
I don't think you could handle it.
LJ.
I met with a "fear specialist" several years ago and they were able to supress my fears to the point where I will swim in a freshwater lake, as well as watch movies containing sea life, with only minimal increases of adrenaline, heart rate, and blood pressure.
It is a sad, and embarrassing fear, but one I have accepted. They were unable to move the fear completely from me and I will not go much further than that with relations to contact with fish! |
| 19th October 2006 02:09 PM |
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| Dan |
quote:
I met with a "fear specialist" several years ago and they were able to supress my fears to the point where I will swim in a freshwater lake, as well as watch movies containing sea life, with only minimal increases of adrenaline, heart rate, and blood pressure.
Ever see Creepshow? |
| 19th October 2006 02:09 PM |
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| Sir Stonesalot |
>I'd say that judging by the theme this week you have ways of dealing with undue stress. <
True, but my wife is getting tired of walking around with a fat lip and black eye. |
| 19th October 2006 02:13 PM |
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| voodoopug |
quote:
Dan wrote:
Ever see Creepshow?
yes, as a 12-14 year old, I would watch it when my parents went to sleep, as occassionally (the movies, not the series), there would be a young lady exposing her breasts! |
| 19th October 2006 02:48 PM |
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| Paranoid_Android |
quote:
voodoopug wrote:
I met with a "fear specialist" several years ago and they were able to supress my fears to the point where I will swim in a freshwater lake, as well as watch movies containing sea life, with only minimal increases of adrenaline, heart rate, and blood pressure.
It is a sad, and embarrassing fear, but one I have accepted. They were unable to move the fear completely from me and I will not go much further than that with relations to contact with fish!
I am a bit of the opposit...I LOVE scuba diving...I am even a Dive Master (a professional rank)...but I HATE lakes...the discust me to no end...I can go out on boats...I can dive in, in the middle, as long as I dont see the bottom...Lake shores are gross...everything is fuzzy...and stagnant... and reaching up to grab you and pull you under...YYEEECCCHHHH!!!
As an added bonus to my life, my family has a wonderful cottage on one of the Finger Lakes near Ithaca...
btw...my irrational fear is SEAWEED...go figure...my father used to chase me around with it as a VERY young child. We would live on Miami Beach for months at a time and this was his idea of "fun w/ his only kid"...I have paid for my therapist last 3 vacations because of it. |
| 19th October 2006 02:51 PM |
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| glencar |
quote:
LadyJane wrote:
Pug..just curious..have you ever watched Jaws???
I don't think you could handle it.
LJ.
LOL I read "Jews" in that sentence & was trying to get a handle on that one! |
| 19th October 2006 02:55 PM |
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| voodoopug |
quote:
Paranoid_Android wrote:
I am a bit of the opposit...I LOVE scuba diving...I am even a Dive Master (a professional rank)...but I HATE lakes...the discust me to no end...I can go out on boats...I can dive in, in the middle, as long as I dont see the bottom...Lake shores are gross...everything is fuzzy...and stagnant... and reaching up to grab you and pull you under...YYEEECCCHHHH!!!
As an added bonus to my life, my family has a wonderful cottage on one of the Finger Lakes near Ithaca...
btw...my irrational fear is SEAWEED...go figure...my father used to chase me around with it as a VERY young child. We would live on Miami Beach for months at a time and this was his idea of "fun w/ his only kid"...I have paid for my therapist last 3 vacations because of it.
I also spent summers growing up on Lake Shafer in Indiana, and became one of the areas best water skiiers. I still will jump in the lake, but I am a bit more cautious than I was as a youth.
I am no fan of seaweed either. |
| 19th October 2006 03:00 PM |
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| TampabayStone |
quote:
voodoopug wrote:
I met with a "fear specialist" several years ago and they were able to supress my fears to the point where I will swim in a freshwater lake, as well as watch movies containing sea life, with only minimal increases of adrenaline, heart rate, and blood pressure.
It is a sad, and embarrassing fear, but one I have accepted. They were unable to move the fear completely from me and I will not go much further than that with relations to contact with fish!
Pug,
Note that when you vacation in Florida with the family, freshwater lakes generally have gators in them. They usually don't bother you, but I would not want you to ruin any previous breakthoughs you had concerning freshwater swimming.
TBS |
| 19th October 2006 03:01 PM |
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| Some Guy |
I won't venture out too far in the ocean. |
| 19th October 2006 03:03 PM |
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| voodoopug |
quote:
TampabayStone wrote:
Pug,
Note that when you vacation in Florida with the family, freshwater lakes generally have gators in them. They usually don't bother you, but I would not want you to ruin any previous breakthoughs you had concerning freshwater swimming.
TBS
I do not swim or go near the water anywhere in Florida, and really don't go there much (aside from Orlando) as many of the things that tourists love about FLA, I fear.
thanks for the heads up though! |
| 19th October 2006 03:06 PM |
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| glencar |
I couldn't live without being near an ocean. I've been attacked by a man-o-war(some pain involved) but still, the ocean is beautiful. |
| 19th October 2006 03:22 PM |
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| voodoopug |
quote:
glencar wrote:
I couldn't live without being near an ocean. I've been attacked by a man-o-war(some pain involved) but still, the ocean is beautiful.
I have been attacked by pugs, but have subdued them with "Frosty Paws"
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| 19th October 2006 04:27 PM |
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| TampabayStone |
quote:
glencar wrote:
I couldn't live without being near an ocean. I've been attacked by a man-o-war(some pain involved) but still, the ocean is beautiful.
I have always lived close to the ocean myself. Living in Florida, it makes no sense to be inland. |
| 19th October 2006 04:29 PM |
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| GotToRollMe |
quote:
glencar wrote:
I couldn't live without being near an ocean. I've been attacked by a man-o-war(some pain involved) but still, the ocean is beautiful.
I agree. I miss the tugboat motors and fog horns from the bays and river when I'm away from home too.
So Pug, just out of curiosity, what turned you off to marine life?
[Edited by GotToRollMe] |
| 20th October 2006 10:01 AM |
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| voodoopug |
quote:
GotToRollMe wrote:
I agree. I miss the tugboat motors and fog horns from the bays and river when I'm away from home too.
So Pug, just out of curiosity, what turned you off to marine life?
[Edited by GotToRollMe]
The only event I can think of is when I was very young (about 5-6 years old), a bunch of our neighbors at the lake house were drinking excessively and one man threw a carp on a passed out party attendant as a joke and the man was so startled that he had a heart attack. |
| 20th October 2006 10:02 AM |
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| Some Guy |
carped. |
| 20th October 2006 10:06 AM |
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| jb |
I fear small rodents. |
| 20th October 2006 12:10 PM |
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| Paranoid_Android |
quote:
voodoopug wrote:
The only event I can think of is when I was very young (about 5-6 years old), a bunch of our neighbors at the lake house were drinking excessively and one man threw a carp on a passed out party attendant as a joke and the man was so startled that he had a heart attack.
Carpe Cardiem!! |
| 20th October 2006 01:49 PM |
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| voodoopug |
quote:
Paranoid_Android wrote:
Carpe Cardiem!!
aparently there is grave concern that the "Asian Carp" is threatening to destroy the ecosystem in Lake Michigan. |
| 20th October 2006 02:06 PM |
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| Saint Sway |
Tarp Cardiem! |
