Head diver killed by stingray

[DandyDon]

Underwater World head diver killed by stingray

In what is believed to be the first such incident in Singapore, a man died after he was stung by a stingray yesterday afternoon.

The victim is Mr Philip Chan, the head of the team of divers at Underwater World Singapore (UWS), which has been closed since June.

Tributes to Mr Chan, who was also the senior supervisor of UWS' curatorial department, began appearing on Facebook last evening.

The New Paper understands that the once-popular attraction on Sentosa island was in the process of moving its marine animals at the time, and Mr Chan, who was in his early 60s, was working with stingrays when tragedy struck.

The police said they were alerted at 2.20pm to a case about an injured man at UWS.

A spokesman said he was taken to the Singapore General Hospital (SGH), where he died of his injuries.

They are investigating the unnatural death.

Mr Philip Chan, senior supervisor of divers at Underwater World Singapore, briefing Ms Steph Wong, 21, and Mr Kristopher Reynolds, 33, on diving techniques before they go on the Dive with the Sharks programme, where one can get up close and personal with marine creatures.

The Singapore Civil Defence Force said it dispatched an ambulance to the scene. The victim was unconscious when he was taken to SGH, its spokesman said.

TNP and The Straits Times (ST) carried profiles of Mr Chan, an avid diver who had been with UWS since it opened in 1991, in June after the closure of the marine park was announced.

It was obvious from the interviews how devoted he was to the marine animals he had worked with for 25 years.

"They are so quietly tame," he told TNP, adding that he was sad to say goodbye to his "band of friends".

"We intend to find them the best homes and environment. The next time I see them, I might not recognise them any more but if I dive, they might recognise me."

Mr Chan would usually be in scuba gear in the water to place food in the mouths of the stingrays and sharks during feeding time while visitors watched and took pictures.

"I treat (the animals) like my babies," he told ST.

While describing the eagle rays and the nurse sharks as "gentle", he told ST that he had been bitten a few times by sharks which mistook him for a fish, but they let go once they realised he was not food.

Mr Philip Chan would hand-feed the stingrays and sharks during feeding time. TNP FILE PHOTO

"Whenever I get in danger, I just keep calm. I can overcome any danger by just being calm," he said.

Tragically, Mr Chan would lose his life to one of his "babies" that he had cherished for so long.

PROVOKED WHEN STRESSED

When contacted, Dr Tan Heok Hui, 45, an ichthyologist, told TNP that stingrays that have been in captivity can feel provoked and try to retaliate by stinging when they face stressful situations such as being moved from their tanks.

Dr Tan, an operations officer at the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum, added: "Stingrays attack when they feel threatened, cornered or alarmed. Sometimes, a stingray might feel threatened when someone accidentally steps on it.

"Stingrays have backward pointing barbs on the spine that have serrated edges. They don't just cause physical pain, the toxins in the spine can also cause extreme discomfort. When a spine pierces human flesh, it breaks and releases toxins into the flesh."

The toxins commonly found in stingray venom are protein-based enzymes like serotonin, which is known to cause severe muscle contractions.

Whether a sting is fatal or not depends on where the victim is stung, said Dr Tan.

"If a victim is hit in vital organs like the chest area, it may trigger a cardiac arrest, which could subsequently be fatal," he added.

The best known case of a stingray killing a human was Australian TV personality Steve Irwin, who was stung in the heart while swimming near a stingray in 2006.

There are more than a dozen species of stingrays in Singapore waters. They include the blue-spotted stingray, whiptail stingray and Gerrard's stingray that can commonly be found in murky waters.

It is not known which species was involved in the attack at UWS.

Dr Tan said: "Stingrays are not usually aggressive, and choose defensive methods to protect themselves. However, stingrays are still wild animals, and when provoked and left with no choice, they will defend themselves using their sting."

UWS, which was owned by Haw Par Corporation, closed its doors on June 27. When it opened in May 1991, it was the largest tropical fish oceanarium in Asia.

Built at a cost of more than $20 million, it was best known for its 83m-long underwater tunnel, where visitors could view fishes swimming above their heads and around them.

The closure did not come as a total surprise to industry experts who pointed out that the attraction had faced keen competition from the newer S.E.A. Aquarium and Universal Studios Singapore theme park, which are also located in Sentosa.

UWS' lease for the premises was due to expire in less than two years, and it decided to close early to facilitate the transfer of its marine creatures, said a UWS spokesman in June.

DESERTED

Underwater World Sentosa. TNP PHOTO: JEREMY LONG

The park was deserted when TNP went there yesterday evening.

Three staff members were seen walking out but when approached, they declined to comment on the incident.

A worker at the nearby Shangri-La's Rasa Sentosa Resort & Spa said he saw an ambulance at Underwater World yesterday afternoon.

The middle-aged man, who requested anonymity, was surprised to find out what had happened.

He said: "It all happened very quickly. The ambulance came and quickly left the premises. I've never seen such an incident happening here before."

Haw Par did not respond to TNP's queries by press time.

 

[chillyinCanada]

Singapore Underwater World diver killed by stingray - BBC News

 

[drrich2]

Underwater World head diver killed by stingray

Attacked? The animal was being worked with/presumeably handled, got spooked and lashed out. Hardly my idea of an 'attack.' Not to diminish this tragedy in the least; sorry to hear what happened to this man. It's just a personal pet peeve that whenever a human dies as a result of an interaction with an animal, there's a tendency to characterize it as an 'attack' on the human. I think the term is used where it's subtly misleading and vilifies the animal.

I'm curious as to where he was stung, and the mechanism of death.

Richard.

 

[Rapid Star]

Attacked? The animal was being worked with/presumeably handled, got spooked and lashed out. Hardly my idea of an 'attack.' Not to diminish this tragedy in the least; sorry to hear what happened to this man. It's just a personal pet peeve that whenever a human dies as a result of an interaction with an animal, there's a tendency to characterize it as an 'attack' on the human. I think the term is used where it's subtly misleading and vilifies the animal.

I agree 100% with what drrich2 said, it seems much easier to "blame" the animal instead of trying to understand what we as humans might have done wrong to provoke an attack.

 

[Basking Ridge Diver]

what we as humans might have done wrong to provoke an attack.

It is just a word used by the media - and so easy to use as you did as well. I think this word is being over analyzed - dog attack, bear attack,... just replace the word - Stingray "conflict" - does that help?

 

[Rapid Star]

just replace the word - Stingray "conflict" - does that help?

It is not so much the word or how it is used it seems like an overused way of taking the blame and passing it along to the animal involved, thus relieving the human element of responsibility regardless of what lead up to the "conflict". For example I work with horses and often see people incorrectly interacting with them so when the horse lashes out it is the horse that is blamed for being aggressive! Heaven forbid we blame the humans who in spite of warnings from both the caregivers and the horse itself continued to pester the animal casing the "attack".

 

[Basking Ridge Diver]

Heaven forbid we blame the humans who in spite of warnings from both the caregivers and the horse itself continued to pester the animal casing the "attack".

In an "attack" there is a sense of provoke or first aggression - in a "conflict" there is no blame assigned - conflict invokes an image that both sides have a reason to escalate. Subtle but distinct from "attack" where the image is from a one sided point of view - attacker and victim...

With any animal (wild or domestic) you take a chance with any encounter - but personal responsibility is another longer discussion.

 

[Rapid Star]

With any animal (wild or domestic) you take a chance with any encounter - but personal responsibility is another longer discussion.

I'll agree with that.

 

[iamrushman]

condolences to family and friends......perhaps occupational hazard?

 

[DanMont]

Attacked? The animal was being worked with/presumeably handled, got spooked and lashed out. Hardly my idea of an 'attack.' Not to diminish this tragedy in the least; sorry to hear what happened to this man. It's just a personal pet peeve that whenever a human dies as a result of an interaction with an animal, there's a tendency to characterize it as an 'attack' on the human. I think the term is used where it's subtly misleading and vilifies the animal.

I'm curious as to where he was stung, and the mechanism of death.

Richard.

The images of rays at Singapore Underwater World which I have seen show some large species. Whilst they dont state which species was involved in the incident if it was a large individual they can have barbs as much as 30cm in length and several centimetres wide, combined with the toxins effectively makes the barb a venomous serrated knife. From the first link it appears he was stung in the chest, as such the toxins could possibly have caused a cardiac arrest not to mention the possible physical trauma to any organs. Very similar circumstances to Steve Irwins tragic death.