Queensland hunter hit by stingray in Mackay while displaying barbs and needles and rushed to hospital

A hunter “with more near-death experiences than you can imagine” added another to the list as he trudged through a swamp in search of food.

Pete Griffiths was out hunting a stingray for cooking with a friend in Mackay, Queensland, on March 5 when a barb went through the palm of his hand.

Griffiths was rushed to hospital by his nurse girlfriend and explained what it was like to be stabbed by a stingray’s relentless barb.

Legendary crocodile hunter Steve Irwin, one of Australia’s most beloved personalities, was killed in 2006 after a stingray stabbed him in the chest.

Griffiths told Daily Mail Australia he was rushed to hospital and pumped with morphine.

“I was lucky enough to use my hand to block the barbs on his last attempt, otherwise it would have been a different story,” he said.

After doctors pumped him with some morphine and antibiotics, he had to let the pain subside before going home to cook what he caught.

While stingrays are usually known for being docile, once endangered, they have bacteria-infested, razor-sharp barbs on their tails to protect themselves when needed.

The barb is sharp as a needle with jagged edges on each side, while the rays are visibly black due to the poisonous bacteria.

If not treated immediately, the infection caused by the bacteria could be worse than the sting itself.

Mr Griffiths said the pain was immediate once it pierced the skin, came in waves and intensified as time went on.

Pete Griffiths went hunting stingray in Queensland with a friend before a swinging barb went through the palm of his hand (wound pictured)

After he ran out of the water, his girlfriend rejected his bravado that he wouldn’t have to go to the hospital when they got back to the car.

“The pain was only about 5/10 and I thought if it gets this bad so quickly I’m in trouble,” Mr Griffiths wrote in a Facebook post after being released from hospital.

“By the time we got to the car I would say we were at a 6-7/10 level and the pain was coming in waves.

“It’s no wonder Steve Irwin was knocked out by one of these, the pain is insane and I definitely wouldn’t want to go through this again.”

Once he arrived at the emergency room, the doctors administered 15 mg of morphine, oxycodone, and local anesthesia before running the wound under hot water, which initially provided immediate relief.

Once the water cooled, the waves of pain got ten times worse according to Mr Griffiths (pictured)

However, once it cooled down, the pain “increased tenfold.”

“The pain has been full for three days, I’m now on day 10 and my hands are swollen again,” he said.

“In the video, I held my hand to my leg to stop the bleeding, it also hit a nerve.

“I was out of the hospital after six or seven hours before I was sent to another hospital and they gave me medicine that I’m still on now.”

After getting over the excruciating pain, Mr. Griffith went straight home and into the kitchen where he finished the job they had started that morning.

The stingrays he and his friend caught were crumbled and fried by the end of the day, turning into salt and pepper troughs with the same texture as scallops.

“Look, it’s good, very good, but not good enough to get excited about,” Mr Griffiths admitted.

The rays he and his friend caught were crumbled and fried by the end of the day, turning into salt and pepper rays

‘It’s no wonder Steve Irwin was knocked out by one of these,’ Mr Griffiths said after being stabbed himself