Stingray Attacks Tourist On Holiday In Phuket

[alanmorison]

A STINGRAY attacked a woman as she swam at a beach on Ko Yao Noi on Saturday evening, inflicting a painful wound.

The woman, a visitor from Hong Kong holidaying on Phuket, underwent emergency treatment at the small local hospital by a doctor who examined the patient's wound from afar.

The Phuket-based doctor used a vision and voice connection from Wachira Hospital to tell a nurse on Ko Yao Noi how to treat the stingray strike. The patient recovered within hours.

The Phuket director of the Tourism And Sports office, Promchote Traivate, said the stingray attack was an isolated incident and was not likely to deter visitors to Phuket or to Yao Noi.

-- Full report at www.phuketwan.com

[starkey_rich]

Always had a fear of standing on a stingray Since a mate and I were wading across a river mouth in Malaysia and he stood on one in the sand.

Luckily the locals got him to hospital as he was getting quite ill.Blood pressure dropping ect.

Then this nasty seeping wound for weeks and many antibiotics.

So this lady sounds very lucky

[huggybear]

"A STINGRAY attacked a woman as she swam at a beach on Ko Yao Noi on Saturday evening, inflicting a painful wound."

The stingray "attacked" the woman, or she stepped on it?

Out of this article that was published after the Crocodile hunter Steve Irwin died:

"Stingrays do not attack people, however if it is stepped on, the stingray will utilize its spine as a form of defense," according to Nancy Passarelli and Andrew Piercy of Florida Museum of Natural History. "Although being pierced by the stingray’s spine is painful, it is rarely life threatening to humans."

Read the whole article here:http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/14674766/

Seems like some sensationalist journalism to me...............maybe next time we'll hear Brittany Spears is coming to Phuket?

Edited August 14, 2008 by huggybear

[alanmorison]

Ah, so Steve Irwin was impaled with a barb to the heart because he ''stepped on a stingray''?

At some point, without pretending to be able to read the animal's mind, a stingray reacts with aggression.

Perhaps you'd prefer the post to say: ''A stingray defended itself today by piercing a tourist in the foot. However, the stingray told police afterwards that it was an accidental reflexive piercing.''

Rolf Harris is on Phuket. Why not Britney next?

Give us a break, huggy. Let's see a few sensational and original posts from you.

[nidhogg]

Ah, so Steve Irwin was impaled with a barb to the heart because he ''stepped on a stingray''?

No, because (as I recall) he snorkled over the top of a stingray in shallow water. From what i recall, they believe the stingray was probably trapped between the cameraman directly in front of it, and Irwin overhead.

At some point, without pretending to be able to read the animal's mind, a stingray reacts with aggression.

say reacts defensively rather. I have dived with hundreds of stingrays, and believe me, they head away from you, not towards you.

[huggybear]

"Give us a break, huggy. Let's see a few sensational and original posts from you."

O.K., here is your break, look at the first page of the Phuket board and notice who started the thread with the most replies and the second most views.

Mr. Morison, I'm surprised you are a journalist considering how sensitive you are. First you give us that thread bashing Phuket under the pretenses of some words, then post you don't want to the thread to be "Thai-bashing" then you post this thread where a clearly non-agressive animal "attacked".

Maybe you should consider a position in one of the British tabloids, The Sun perhaps........

[alanmorison]

Huggy, why are sensitivity and journalism mutually exclusive? Perhaps you have to see a little more of the world to learn that preconceptions are sometimes disproved. On the one hand, you celebrate the popularity of your own threads, yet disparage Britain's most popular newspaper. I don't share your desire to pigeonhole everyone by profession, nationality, gender, or whatever. And because this is a forum site designed to encourage discussion and debate, I don't share your desire to personalise every post. Give us a break, huggy.

[huggybear]

Huggy, why are sensitivity and journalism mutually exclusive? Perhaps you have to see a little more of the world to learn that preconceptions are sometimes disproved. On the one hand, you celebrate the popularity of your own threads, yet disparage Britain's most popular newspaper. I don't share your desire to pigeonhole everyone by profession, nationality, gender, or whatever. And because this is a forum site designed to encourage discussion and debate, I don't share your desire to personalise every post. Give us a break, huggy.

"why are sensitivity and journalism mutually exclusive"

Not certain what you mean here but if you are a journalist you should stand behind what you print and if someone says "Hey, you're wrong" (stingray attack?) you should not be so sensitive instead you might reprint the correction.

"On the one hand, you celebrate the popularity of your own threads"

absolutely not, I just pointed one out when you asked for a one. Actually I try not to post too many topics as I don't want to be a board hog

"And because this is a forum site designed to encourage discussion and debate, I don't share your desire to personalise every post"

I definitely do not personalise, but when I see contradiction and hypocrisy, especially from a newsman, I'll call you on it.

"Give us a break, huggy"

o.k., can do

Edited August 15, 2008 by huggybear

[alanmorison]

Huggy, Happy to be called on inaccuracy, hypocrisy or failure to tell the whole truth anytime. Whether the stingray ''attacked'' the victim is an interesting point. But to take that to its logical conclusion, you'd have sharks and bears accidentally damaging people because they just happen to get in the way. The victim certainly felt she had been attacked at the time. It's a once-a-year happening, fortunately with a happy ending, and there have been no calls for a stingray cull so far.

[huggybear]

Huggy, Happy to be called on inaccuracy, hypocrisy or failure to tell the whole truth anytime. Whether the stingray ''attacked'' the victim is an interesting point. But to take that to its logical conclusion, you'd have sharks and bears accidentally damaging people because they just happen to get in the way. The victim certainly felt she had been attacked at the time. It's a once-a-year happening, fortunately with a happy ending, and there have been no calls for a stingray cull so far.

Had a friend get hit by one here in Phuket in 1988. I think since then they are pretty fished out here, you see them hanging on dozens of barbecue cycles.

Regarding our exchange, you mention above bears and sharks, yet, those types of animals clearly attack, those are "attack" animals. My only argument is that stingrays are non-aggressive, the barb is a defense mechanism, they do not use it to capture prey so whether it's "interesting" or just complete BS to say a stingray attacked someone I guess is left to each, to make there own call.

[steelepulse]

Hilarious exchange.  We've got the forum spammer....uh sponsor looking for more eyeballs for his website.  Sensationalism at it's best...." Stingray attacks"............Stingrays don't attack, so maybe it really should have read to be accurate "Unfortunate swimmer gets a barb from a Stingray".

[macduff]

Actually it was a giant octopus.You guys would cause an argument in an empty house

[alanmorison]

Animal rights is a noble concept and a lot of good work has been done lately to protect endangered species and save furry critters. However, I suspect stingrays as a group are less worried about their reputations than some of the commentators in this forum. Perhaps the English language simply fails to provide a word better than ''attack'' to adequately describe an aggressive reflex action. I would argue, though, that if someone stood on me and I reacted with a punch to the jaw, that would constitute an attack, even if it was completely reflexive and I regretted it immediately. Given the public appetite these days for movies that apply human characteristics to every living creature, I can imagine that the stingray swam off into the sunset, telling itself: ''Jeez, was that really necessary? Maybe you need group therapy.''

[dingdongrb]

Perhaps the English language simply fails to provide a word better than ''attack'' to adequately describe an aggressive reflex action. I would argue, though, that if someone stood on me and I reacted with a punch to the jaw, that would constitute an attack, even if it was completely reflexive and I regretted it immediately.

Maybe the stingray acted in 'self defense'?

[alanmorison]

Hilarious exchange. We've got the forum spammer....uh sponsor looking for more eyeballs for his website. Sensationalism at it's best...." Stingray attacks"............Stingrays don't attack, so maybe it really should have read to be accurate "Unfortunate swimmer gets a barb from a Stingray".

On the one hand, you apparently enjoyed the debate. On the other, you condemn it and other postings as ''spamming.'' I guess the fact you've added a comment indicates you are happy to join the conversation, if not the discussion. If posting news items and engaging in debate without innuendo, personal insults or spleen-venting is ''spamming,'' then I'm happy to plead guilty to that.

[alanmorison]

Maybe the stingray acted in 'self defense'?

Who can say? Facing a charge of assault and battery, the stingray would certainly try to get off the hook with that line. But 'self-defence' is to apply human values to animals, and much more of a stretch than ''attack.'' You'd have to be able to read the stingray's mind to say it acted in self-defence. But an attack, provoked or not, reflexive or not, is an attack.

[Carib]

Anybody know if the stingray is ok ???

[Who, me ?]

Stingray do not attack human. They defend themselves when stepped on .

For the Steve Austin case, it is not different at all. If he had kept a safety distance and let this animal alone, he would still be here.

Usually, when an animal attacks, it is for its survival (food, threat, etc.....). Other than that, yes it is self defense....Only humans attack for no valid reason.

[alanmorison]

Stingray do not attack human. They defend themselves when stepped on .

For the Steve Austin case, it is not different at all. If he had kept a safety distance and let this animal alone, he would still be here.

Usually, when an animal attacks, it is for its survival (food, threat, etc.....). Other than that, yes it is self defense....Only humans attack for no valid reason.

Agreed. But you are assuming the word ''attack'' implies a conscious decision. No dictionary I've seen jumps to that conclusion. An attack is certainly an aggressive action, but I argue that an attack can be a reflexive action, without thought. Did Russia attack Georgia, or was it self-defence?

See what I mean?

[Who, me ?]

Stingray do not attack human. They defend themselves when stepped on .

For the Steve Austin case, it is not different at all. If he had kept a safety distance and let this animal alone, he would still be here.

Usually, when an animal attacks, it is for its survival (food, threat, etc.....). Other than that, yes it is self defense....Only humans attack for no valid reason.

Agreed. But you are assuming the word ''attack'' implies a conscious decision. No dictionary I've seen jumps to that conclusion. An attack is certainly an aggressive action, but I argue that an attack can be a reflexive action, without thought. Did Russia attack Georgia, or was it self-defence?

See what I mean?

Animals do not attack for no reason. They do it by instinct to feed themselves or to answer to a threat from another animal (predator) or human. And in the case of this stingray, it was a self defense reflex, not an attack.

Linking this event to the Georgia / Russia bullshit is completely wrong. As I mentioned, only humans attack for NO VALID reason.

[jitagon]

Scandalous! As if the effects of higher fuel prices were not deterring tourists enough. I propose that local government sweep the ocean of each and every living creature deemed to be perilous. I also propose the leavening of the sea waves in the 'low season' to enable tourists to take their God given right for a dip on their holidays. <deleted>.

[alanmorison]

This is all about the word ''attack,'' which I say is applicable whether the action is in self-defence, reflexive, aggressive, or not. A barb through the skin, injecting toxin, constitutes an attack. The victim did not impale herself on the barb. The stingray attacked her, according to the dictionary definition of ''attack.''

[Who, me ?]

This is all about the word ''attack,'' which I say is applicable whether the action is in self-defence, reflexive, aggressive, or not. A barb through the skin, injecting toxin, constitutes an attack. The victim did not impale herself on the barb. The stingray attacked her, according to the dictionary definition of ''attack.''

Playing with words will bring us nowhere ! What you are actually doing, is twisting a fact to make it more sensational !

OK, have fun.....But I stand by my previous posts....

[huggybear]

This is all about the word ''attack,'' which I say is applicable whether the action is in self-defence, reflexive, aggressive, or not. A barb through the skin, injecting toxin, constitutes an attack. The victim did not impale herself on the barb. The stingray attacked her, according to the dictionary definition of ''attack.''

Yes, the Phuket tabloids (who has the Phuket alien baby anyway?) will sensationalize and deem the word "attack" the same as "defense".

As I posted earlier, we all can come to our own conclusions regarding this phuketwan article, but as myself and a few others have mentioned, this is just complete B.S. AND as mentioned by another poster not helping the tourism business here.

[alanmorison]

This is all about the word ''attack,'' which I say is applicable whether the action is in self-defence, reflexive, aggressive, or not. A barb through the skin, injecting toxin, constitutes an attack. The victim did not impale herself on the barb. The stingray attacked her, according to the dictionary definition of ''attack.''

Yes, the Phuket tabloids (who has the Phuket alien baby anyway?) will sensationalize and deem the word "attack" the same as "defense".

As I posted earlier, we all can come to our own conclusions regarding this phuketwan article, but as myself and a few others have mentioned, this is just complete B.S. AND as mentioned by another poster not helping the tourism business here.

Phuketwan spoke to three people who were at the beach, and a fourth who was at the hospital, so I consider the account of the stingray attack to be fair and reasonable. Others clearly have a different take on the use of the word ''attack.'' We also quoted a Ministry of Tourism and Sport official who said it was a rare event that it was unlikly to affect tourism. My view is that informed travellers will hesitate to visit a destination that fails to be honest and upfront about these kinds of incidents. Greater harm is done by not reporting them.

[huggybear]

This is all about the word ''attack,'' which I say is applicable whether the action is in self-defence, reflexive, aggressive, or not. A barb through the skin, injecting toxin, constitutes an attack. The victim did not impale herself on the barb. The stingray attacked her, according to the dictionary definition of ''attack.''

Yes, the Phuket tabloids (who has the Phuket alien baby anyway?) will sensationalize and deem the word "attack" the same as "defense".

As I posted earlier, we all can come to our own conclusions regarding this phuketwan article, but as myself and a few others have mentioned, this is just complete B.S. AND as mentioned by another poster not helping the tourism business here.

Phuketwan spoke to three people who were at the beach, and a fourth who was at the hospital, so I consider the account of the stingray attack to be fair and reasonable. Others clearly have a different take on the use of the word ''attack.'' We also quoted a Ministry of Tourism and Sport official who said it was a rare event that it was unlikly to affect tourism. My view is that informed travellers will hesitate to visit a destination that fails to be honest and upfront about these kinds of incidents. Greater harm is done by not reporting them.

O.K., well, we're looking forward to your future articles:

"Phuketians killed by their motorbikes"

"Viagra attacking the 60 something set, man dies of heart failure"

"Money being stolen by Central Festival, due to high prices"

"Rugby 9 player attacked by opposing team, tackled for a loss"

"Bangla girls taking money"

[cmsally]

People just have to accept that if they venture out into the ocean/mountains/jungle etc. there are other creatures that inhabit these places. Some are friendly, some are not. You take sensible precautions but somethings you cannot avoid. If an encounter with a stingray puts you off coming to the beach, then better to sit in your armchair and watch Nat Geo at home.

I had one encounter with a stingray on a beach in Australia in the middle of nowhere. We were walking down the beach and it was buried under the sand. I put my foot on it, but in a split second it took off. It was like having a hovercraft go from underneath you. Will never forget it, and it didn't attempt to attack, and it was a huge stingray.

Stingray don't see you 50m down the beach and come and get you, this one didn't even act in self defence.

[limbos]

Maybe the stingray acted in 'self defense'?

Who can say? Facing a charge of assault and battery, the stingray would certainly try to get off the hook with that line. But 'self-defence' is to apply human values to animals, and much more of a stretch than ''attack.'' You'd have to be able to read the stingray's mind to say it acted in self-defence. But an attack, provoked or not, reflexive or not, is an attack.

Sting rays don't attack, as already mentioned a few times, they don't come after you and attack you. If you're unfortunately enough to step on a sting ray, it will react in self defense, which in my opinion is way different than attacking. Get educated by some dive or underwater professionals and they will all tell you the same.

[alanmorison]

OK, let's rewrite that introductory paragraph. ''A woman was foolish enough to step in the water close to a stingray today, and the stingray couldn't help itself. It just had to barb her and cause a painful injury. But it was in self-defence, the stingray said.''

Happy now?

I think you've watched too many cartoon flicks where all the animals are really, really nice, and behave just the way humans think they should.

The word ''attack'' doesn't mean flying off to aggressively impale someone. It covers self-defence, too. It may be a natural reflex, but in the English language, what the stingray did constitutes an attack.

[huggybear]

OK, let's rewrite that introductory paragraph. ''A woman was foolish enough to step in the water close to a stingray today, and the stingray couldn't help itself. It just had to barb her and cause a painful injury. But it was in self-defence, the stingray said.''

Happy now?

I think you've watched too many cartoon flicks where all the animals are really, really nice, and behave just the way humans think they should.

The word ''attack'' doesn't mean flying off to aggressively impale someone. It covers self-defence, too. It may be a natural reflex, but in the English language, what the stingray did constitutes an attack.

O.K. with that logic in mind, a rock loosens off of a hill tumbles down, I see it and block it as it hits me. What you are then saying is that I "attacked" the hill by the defensive action I took.

Mr. Morison you cannot win this argument. Your statements of "the silly tourist walking near the stingray" makes you look more ludicrous. The defense mechanism that the stingray has, is AGAIN, not used in an offensive manner. It does not attack it defends.

Take a marine biology class would you?