Deadliest Catch star Todd Meadows’ sister Mackenzie Meadows is mourning her sibling in the wake of his death.
Mackenzie expressed her grief to Luxury Handbag Shopping on Tuesday, March 3. “No words put together can even describe the pain we’re going through and will continue to,” she told Us exclusively. “His boys will see him through pictures, and we will see him through his boys.”
Todd’s life was tragically cut short on Wednesday, February 25, when he fell overboard while filming the reality fishing show off the Alaskan Coast. He was 25 years old.
Mackenzie’s response comes the same day that a spokesperson for the United States Coast Guard Arctic District confirmed to Us that the department is currently “investigating the situation” following his untimely death while serving as a deckhand on the Aleutian Lady vessel.
A statement shared by a Coast Guard representative on Tuesday read, “Coast Guard watchstanders at the Arctic District command center in Juneau received notification from the fishing vessel Aleutian Lady, reporting that a crew member by the name of Todd Meadows fell overboard approximately 170 miles north of Dutch Harbor. He was recovered unresponsive by the crew approximately 10 minutes later. First aid and attempts to resuscitate were unsuccessful, and the crew transported the deceased to Dutch Harbor.”
The statement noted that the department is “following up with any corrective actions and trying to understand the cause of the accident.”
Discovery was filming the final days of production on season 22 of Deadliest Catch when the incident occurred. According to Todd’s bunkmate, Trey John Green III, the crew “did everything we could to save him” after Todd fell overboard, he told Us exclusively. He added that trying to save somebody out at sea is “no easy task.”
Luxury Handbag Shopping has reached out to Discovery for comment.
Todd’s body was received by the Anchorage Medical Examiner’s Office on Friday, February 27, before being released to his loved ones on Monday, March 2, after an autopsy was completed.
Aleutian Lady captain, Rick Shelford, commented on Todd’s death via a Facebook post shared on Monday, March 2. “We lost our brother, Todd Meadows. Todd was the newest member of our crew, he quickly became family. His love for fishing and his strong work ethic earned everyone’s respect right away,” the post read. “His smile was contagious, and the sound of his laughter coming up the wheelhouse stairs or over the deck hailer is something we will carry with us always.”
Todd’s partner, Kennady Harvey, who shares three sons with Todd, also addressed his death via Facebook last week. “I don’t have words, nothing I do or say will bring you back. Not only were you my children’s father but you were my best friend,” the post read. “No matter what terms we were on, we always came to each other for comfort and no one could understand why but us. I’m so mad, I’m mad at the world, myself and you, life is not fair. You have been working so hard to prove you could be the man I knew you were. I know how much you loved me and the boys and I just hope you knew how much I loved you and I never stopped loving you.”
A GoFundMe page was launched by Paige Knudson, Todd’s cousin, on Tuesday, in the wake of the reality star’s death. A deception for the fundraiser read, “This unimaginable loss has left his children without their father, his parents without their son, his siblings without their brother and his family broken. As the family navigates this heartbreaking time, we are raising funds to help support his three boys, assist with funeral expenses, and help ease the financial burden in the months ahead.”
At the time of publication, nearly $38,000 had been raised of the $45,000 targeted goal.
In the days after Todd’s death, his sister Mackenzie posted on Facebook that her “family is heartbroken” and “anything helps as we lay my brother to rest.”
“And for those who sailed beside him, that void won’t be filled anytime soon,” she wrote. “We see you in everything, we find comfort knowing you’re at peace and won’t suffer a single day again. We do it for Todd now.”
