Man Who Almost Died From Stingray Attack Says It's A Good Story For The Pub

A man nearly died from a stingray attack but says at least he got a 'good pub story' out of it.

Right, we all have a story in our back pocket to shock mates at the pub. Some opt for near-death experiences, others about holidays gone wrong.

Well, Jamie Cunningham's story includes both, and a stingray - just for good measure.

Christine Cunningham

So, what happened to Jamie?

Well, the Glaswegian expat had been enjoying a day at Oreti Beach in New Zealand, back in 2018.

He was out with his family, playing with boogie-boards and having a great time.

That is until he felt a sharp and, frankly, 'excruciating pain' in his right foot, as he told the Otago Daily Times.

Speaking of the experience, Jamie painted a vivid picture: "It was that reaction when you stand on a piece of Lego, and your leg just gives way. Next thing I knew this thing has hit me like a steel bar in the ribs under my left arm and I've just gone down."

Sounds like the biggest bit of Lego in the world, or a stingray, which Jamie actually managed to see for a split second: "I just saw it out of the corner of my eye. It was like a whip.

Alamy

"I didn't even know there were stingrays at Oreti Beach, but I knew that whatever it was, it was fairly big and that I had my right foot on it."

Luckily the devoted dad managed to crawl back to the shore, where he urged his wife Christine to get their sons Alex and Matthew out of the water.

In another stroke of good fortune, two people nearby were paramedics and stopped to help Jamie, who had an open wound that looked like 'raw meat,' in the words of Christine.

Jamie soon started to feel the stingray's toxins surging through his body and experienced breathing difficulties.

Christine Cunningham

Luckily, the paramedics were able to help him until he got to Southland Hospital, where they had to drain the poisonous fluids.

With the help of some strong medication and assisted breathing the dad was eventually discharged.

Still, Jamie maintained his sense of humour throughout the ordeal, adding: "People keep saying I was lucky, but if I was lucky I wouldn't have stood on the friggin' thing."

"It was a bit freaky. It doesn't happen often, does it? Steve Irwin came to mind, although that was a different situation altogether. He was swimming with it, and it misconstrued him as a threat and went for him. And of course, he got it in the heart, so regardless if there was venom or not, he was a goner.

"But it's a good pub story, isn't it, and I'll have a good scar to prove it."