Todd Meadows, a deckhand on Discovery Channel’s Deadliest Catch, has died at the age of 25.
Meadows was working on the Aleutian Lady, one of the vessels filmed for the long-running show, fishing for crabs on the Bering Sea at the time of his death on February 25, although details of the nature of his death are unclear.
Captain Rick Shelford, who has starred on the show since Season 19, called Meadow’s death the “most tragic day in the history of the Aleutian Lady”.
Deadline understands that Deadliest Catch was in production on Season 22 when the incident occurred and the Aleutian Lady, led by Shelford and his crew, was one of the vessels that was being captured for the show. Production has subsequently concluded.
The show is produced by Fremantle-owned Original Productions. Exec producers on Season 21 include Brian Lovett, Jeff Hasler, Arom Starr-Paul and Thom Beers as well Warner Bros. Discovery’s Joseph Boyle, who was recently promoted to head of content at Discovery Channel, and Bill Howard with Johnny Beechler, Will Gatlin as co-exec producers.
“We are deeply saddened by the tragic passing of Todd Meadows. This is a devastating loss, and our hearts are with his loved ones, his crewmates, and the entire fishing community during this incredibly difficult time,” a Discovery Channel spokesperson said.
Meadows was the newest member of the Aleutian Lady crew. “His love for fishing and his strong work ethic earned everyone’s respect right away. 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,” Shelford said.
Meadows is survived by his wife and three children.
Safety on the Aleutian Lady has been a source of unscripted drama on Deadliest Catch before.
In Season 19, Sean Dwyer, who was the captain of the Brenna A, a vessel previously featured on the show, was set to be a co-captain of the Aleutian Lady alongside Shelford.
“I’m feeling like this is chaos and I don’t necessarily feel like it’s a good idea to take off,” he said in episode three (see clip below). “I honestly feel like there’s some corners that are being cut and I’m concerned.
“There is no safety issue, at all,” replied Shelford. Dwyer left before the ship took off.