Todd Meadows, a deckhand on the reality television show “Deadliest Catch,” died after he was reported to have fallen overboard from the F/V Aleutian Lady Feb. 25 about 170 miles north of Dutch Harbor, Alaska, according to a social media post Tuesday by the Coast Guard.
Meadows, 25, “was recovered unresponsive by the crew approximately ten minutes later,” Chief Petty Officer Travis Magee, a spokesman for the Coast Guard’s Arctic District, told the Associated Press. Efforts to resuscitate Meadows were unsuccessful, and the crew brought his body to Dutch Harbor, he said.
Meadows, of Montesano, Wash., was in his first year as a cast member of the Discovery Channel show. He joined the series last May but no episodes for the new season have aired, according to the Associated Press.
“He was recovered unresponsive by the crew approximately ten minutes later,” Magee wrote. Efforts to resuscitate Meadows were unsuccessful, and the crew brought his body to Dutch Harbor, he said.
“We lost our brother,” Aleutian Lady Capt. Rick Shelford wrote in a post on Facebook that did not detail how Meadows died. Shelford called it the “most tragic day in the history of the Aleutian Lady on the Bering Sea.”
Meadows was the newest member of the 125-foot boat’s crew but quickly became family, Shelford wrote.
“Todd’s love for his children, his family, and his life was evident in everything he did. He worked hard, loved deeply, and brought joy to those around him,” Shelford wrote.
A statement released by the Discovery Channel called Meadows’ death “a devastating loss, and our hearts are with his loved ones, his crewmates, and the entire fishing community during this incredibly difficult time.”
An online fundraiser had brought in about $30,000 by Tuesday to assist Meadows’ family, including his three sons, and pay for funeral costs and other expenses. The fundraiser said Meadows, died what doing what he loved best: crabbing on Alaska waters.
“Todd will forever be part of this boat, this crew, and this brotherhood,” Shelford wrote. “Though we lost him far too soon, his legacy will live on through his children and in every memory we carry of him.”
“Rest easy brother, till we meet again.”
The Coast Guard is conducting a marine casualty investigation.
“Our deepest condolences go out to the family, friends, and crewmates of Mr. Meadows,” said Capt. Christopher Culpepper, commander of U.S. Coast Guard Sector Western Alaska and U.S. Arctic. “This is a tragic reminder of the dangers fishermen face daily. We are committed to a thorough investigation to understand what happened and to help prevent future tragedies at sea.”
