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Stingray kills woman in Florida Keys

Stingray kills Michigan woman in Florida Keys

By The Associated Press

Story Created: Mar 20, 2008 at 12:51 PM EDT

Story Updated: Mar 20, 2008 at 4:35 PM EDT

MARATHON, Fla. (AP) - Officials say a Michigan woman died after a stingray jumped out of the water and struck her in the upper body in the Florida Keys.

Wildlife officials say the spotted eagle ray hit the 55-year-old woman in the face or neck while she was in a boat with her family Thursday. Her name and hometown aren't being released yet.

Officials say it's not clear whether the animal's barb struck her, or if the impact killed her. It's also not clear how big it was.

Spotted eagle rays can grow up to 17 feet in length, weigh up to 500 pounds and have a wingspan of up to 10 feet.

They are known to occasionally jump out of the water but are not aggressive and use the venomous tip at the end of their tail as a defense mechanism.


(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

Friday, Mar 21 at 2:25 PM Curious wrote ...

I'm still curious. I guess the authorities determined that the cause of the fall was solely due to the impact of the ray and ruled out any other possibility.

Friday, Mar 21 at 11:38 AM Bob Russo wrote ...

My family and I visit the Keys yearly. The rays are "cleaning" themselves of parasites they may have collected. This was unfortunly a csse of being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Thursday, Mar 20 at 10:32 PM JC wrote ...

Please, it was not an attack! It was a freak accident.

Thursday, Mar 20 at 5:01 PM Carol wrote ...

We have seen stingrays jump straight out of the water while boating quite a few times. This stingray did not attack anybody, it was an accident.

Thursday, Mar 20 at 2:32 PM Jack Thomas wrote ...

How did that thing JUMP out of the water!?

Thursday, Mar 20 at 1:33 PM Anonymous wrote ...

It's not an attack! It's just a rare ocurrence of a person being in the wrong place at the wrong time. My sympathy to the family.

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