Deadliest Catch star Todd Meadows’ cause of death has been confirmed.
The 25-year-old passed away after falling overboard into freezing waters while filming the hit fishing television series, and on Monday (06.04.26), his death was confirmed as drowning with probable hypothermia.
Todd, a deckhand and father of three, died on 25 February after an incident aboard a crabbing vessel in the Bering Sea. According to his death certificate, he died from “drowning with probable hypothermia” and “submersion of body in cold water”, with the manner of death ruled an accident.
His body was recovered within minutes of entering the water, but attempts to resuscitate him were unsuccessful and he was pronounced dead at 5.15pm.
The incident occurred while cameras were filming the long-running Discovery Channel series Deadliest Catch, which has documented the risks faced by fishing crews since its launch in 2005.
Todd’s devastated mother Angela Meadows told TMZ: “We don’t want to see any footage of the accident and do not want Discovery to air any of that footage or make money off of our son’s death.
“We hope they only air good things of Todd on that boat.”
Boat captain Rick Shelford said in a tribute: “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.”
Accounts from crew members described the moments after Todd entered the water.
Trey John Green III said: “I see Todd. He’s floating, he’s swimming. He’s got huge baby blue eyes. And I can still, probably from like 100 yards away, I could still see his eyes looking around.
“Todd was still alive, he’s still swimming, he’s still trying to hang in there.
“We get next to him, and then Steve – Steve is the – every boat has a designated rescue swimmer for this exact kind of scenario. Steve was already geared up and was already in the diving suit.”
Trey added further attempts to rescue Todd were complicated when equipment failed.
He said: “The second time we went to go lift him up, Todd was just – he was lifeless.
“He didn’t have any more – like I said, the first time, he was fighting, trying to get onto the sling. And then the second time, he was just – he was lifeless.”
The crew said Todd had been in the water for “three or four minutes” before being brought back onboard, by which point he had begun “turning blue”.
Todd’s family later confirmed he had suffered a concussion weeks before his death, which had delayed his return to work. He had recently returned to fishing after recovering.
Angela said: “The last photo I got of him was when he was building a fire. He was listening to music in the moment and was so happy.
“That’s how I want to remember him.”
