Angler taken to hospital after being 'seriously hurt' by stingray in the Solent
AN angler was ‘seriously hurt’ and taken to hospital after being ‘slashed’ by a ‘huge’ stingray at the weekend after he accidentally caught the fish.
Luke Cook was surprised when a ‘long fight’ saw him reel in the 15lb stingray at Warsash Beach.
The 28-year-old attempted to place the stingray back in the water with his hand after it had unhooked itself before the fish lashed out with its tail barb.
Luckily for Luke, his father and wife were not far away and came to the rescue, helping him walk back to the car before speeding him to hospital.
Luke, of Warsash, blamed himself for the ordeal. He said: ‘It was my carelessness and inexperience that led to my being stung.
‘I was on my own fishing down Warsash beach and within 15 minutes I had a huge take on my rod.
‘After a long fight bringing the fish in I didn’t expect to see a stingray on the end of the line as I have never caught or heard of one being caught off that beach.
‘The fish unhooked itself on the beach and when I attempted to move it back to the water it slashed me.
‘Luckily my father and wife were about 15 minutes away and helped me walk back to where our car was parked and she rushed me to hospital where I spent the night.’
Police arrived and were advised to check the beach to make sure the stingray went back in the water.
Luke, who was left needing stitches and suffered a swollen hand, has been recovering at home since the incident.
Doctors warned him to be careful of infection before releasing him home the following morning.
Luke added: ‘In hindsight I should not have gone near the stingray and tried to push it back in - it was down to my carelessness and inexperience with these fish. I feel better now.’
Blue Planet Society, posting on Facebook, said: ‘Once landed the animal became unhooked and as it was being returned to the water the angler was slashed by the tail barb and ended up in hospital.’
Blue Planet Society said common stingrays visit UK waters during the summer months.
Stingrays can be dangerous and even cause death. Australian wildlife celebrity Steve Irwin died in 2006 after being pierced through the heart by a stingray.