Todd

Todd Meadows, a deckhand on one of the fishing vessels featured on the Emmy-winning reality series “Deadliest Catch,” died after he fell overboard into the Bering Sea.

The official cause of death listed on the crew member’s death certificate, which was obtained by TMZ, states that Meadows died from drowning with probable hypothermia and submersion of his body in cold water. The death has been ruled an accident by the Alaska Department of Health.

Meadows, a rookie deckhand who joined the production in May 2025, had not yet been featured on the long-running reality series at the time of his death. “Deadliest Catch” was reportedly wrapping production on Season 22 when the incident occurred, and cameras were rolling.

Meadows’ mother, Angela Meadows, has since asked that the show not air footage of her son’s death. “No parent would want the world to watch their child die,” Meadows told Alaska News Source.

Rick Shelford, the captain of the Aleutian Lady, announced in a social media post that Meadows died Feb. 25. He called it “the most tragic day in the history of the Aleutian Lady on the Bering Sea.”

“We lost our brother,” Shelford wrote in his lengthy 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. 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.

“He worked hard, loved deeply, and brought joy to those around him,” he added. “Todd will forever be part of this boat, this crew, and this brotherhood. Though we lost him far too soon, his legacy will live on through his children and in every memory we carry of him.”

A GoFundMe set up in Meadows’ name described the deckhand from Montesano, Wash., as a father to “three amazing little boys” who died “while doing what he loved — crabbing out on Alaskan waters.”

The fundraiser has since raised more than $59,000.

According to the Associated Press, Meadows was reported to have fallen overboard around 170 miles north of Dutch Harbor, Alaska.

“He was recovered unresponsive by the crew approximately 10 minutes later,” Chief Petty Officer Travis Magee, a spokesperson with the Coast Guard’s Arctic District, told the AP.

The incident is still being investigated by the Coast Guard.

Times staff writer Tracy Brown contributed to this report.

DEADLIEST Catch star Todd Meadows’ cause of death was revealed on Monday, over a month after the deck hand fell overboard into freezing waters.

Meadows died on February 25 in an accident aboard a vessel in the Bering Sea while the Deadliest Catch cameras were rolling.

Meadow, a father of three, died after he drowned “with probable hypothermia” and “submersion of body in cold water,” his death certificate said.

His death was ruled an accident.

The 25-year-old fell overboard while crabbing on a fishing boat off the coast of Alaska and was pronounced dead on February 25 at 5:15pm.

His body was recovered minutes after he fell, but the several attempts to resuscitate him were unsuccessful.

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DESPERATE CREW

Deadliest Catch star’s harrowing final moments as rescue harness snaps

His death was caught on camera while filming the long-running Discovery Channel series.

Deadliest Catch premiered in 2005, giving insight into the harsh conditions fishing crews face on the Bering Sea.

His mother, Angela, told TMZ that the family doesn’t want the footage to be aired.

“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,” she said.

“We hope they only air good things of Todd on that boat.”

Captain Rick Shelford called February 25 “the most tragic day in the history of the Aleutian Lady on the Bering Sea.”

“Todd was the newest member of our crew, he quickly became family,” Shelford said.

“His love for fishing and his strong work ethic earned everyone’s respect right away.”

The crew later broke their silence revealing Meadows’ tragic final moments.

The crew said he was left blue and foaming at the mouth after they tried to save him numerous times.

Deckhand Trey John Green III told Page Six that Meadows ended up in the water following an incident with one of the traps used to catch shellfish.

The crew ran to the back of the boat to immediately keep their eyes on Meadows after he hit the water.

“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,” Green said.

“Todd was still alive, he’s still swimming, he’s still trying to hang in there.

“We get next to him, and then Steve [Porter] — 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.”

Green said that when Porter jumped into the water to save Meadows, the harness attached to the crane broke.

Other crew members managed to get a life sling into the water quickly, but when Meadows was “halfway up” and “almost back on the boat,” he fell back into the sea.

“The second time we went to go lift him up, Todd was just — he was lifeless,” Green recalled.

“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.”

Green said Meadows was only in the water for “three or four minutes” before they got him back on the boat, but at that point he began “turning blue.”

“I just want to reiterate that — everybody did everything they could do,” Green said.

A GoFundMe was created after Meadows’ death, which has since raised over $56,000 for his family and his three sons.

Meadows’ mother revealed that the 25-year-old suffered a concussion just weeks before his death.

The head injury left him unable to return to work for several weeks.

He returned to Washington to recover, which was the last week his family saw him, 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,” she said.

“That’s how I want to remember him.”

Todd Bridges has taken steps to make his split from Bettijo Hirschi official after announcing in January that he and his spouse had separated.

The former “Diff’rent Strokes” actor, 60, filed paperwork asking to end his marriage Tuesday in Arizona, Us Weekly reported Thursday. This will be the second divorce for both parties.

A representative for Bridges didn’t respond immediately to The Times’ request for confirmation and comment.

Bridges announced in January that he and Hirschi were heading their separate ways after getting married in 2022. At the time, he called the decision a “difficult” one for him.

“This was not an easy choice, and it comes with a heavy heart, but also with love and gratitude for the life we shared,” he said in a statement to The Times. “I thank God for the time we’ve had together, the lessons we’ve learned, and the family we’ve built. Even in this season of change, I trust He is guiding us both toward healing, peace, and new beginnings.”

Bridges said at the time that he would “continue to lift my former partner up in prayer, wishing them joy and fulfillment in the chapters ahead.”

The two met in January 2022; they married nine months later, after a brief engagement. Hirschi told Tamron Hall last year that a friend who wrote a new dating profile for her showed it to Bridges as “market research.” The friend then told Hirschi that Bridges wanted to get in touch.

“She’s a lot like my mom,” Bridges told Hall.

During a contentious spousal support dispute in 2025, Hirschi described the “Everybody Hates Chris” veteran as “semi-retired,” Us Weekly reported in February. The documents came as part of a battle Hirschi fought with first husband Heath Hirschi after marrying Bridges. At the time, Us said that Bettijo was claiming monthly expenses of around $16,550 and said Bridges made only “about $700” a month in 2024 unless he obtained “contract work.”

The Hirschis, who divorced in 2020, share four children, two of them minors, the outlet said. Heath Hirschi wanted out of paying $2,700 a month in spousal support payments after his ex married someone his legal team called a “well-known Hollywood actor.” Us said that in December 2025, the court revised the former couple’s agreement to $1,206 per month in child support, with $43,401.96 due for unpaid past support.

Bridges, meanwhile, has about a dozen acting credits since 2020, according to IMDb, which also says he worked on several new projects in various stages of production.

He also has two adult offspring: Daughter Bo is from a previous relationship with Amanda Rushing; he shares son Spencir, 27, with his first wife. Spencir Bridges was, like his dad, a child actor, with roles in the 2007 movie “Daddy Day Camp” and, in 2005, the TV series “ER.” Spencir’s most recent acting credits were in 2009 when he appeared in the series “iCarly” and in the TV movie “The Three Gifts.”

Todd Bridges is the last surviving original cast member of the hit sitcom “Diff’rent Strokes,” which ran from 1978 to 1986. Conrad Bain played Phillip Drummond, a wealthy Park Avenue businessman and father of Kimberly (Dana Plato). Drummond adopted sons Arnold (Gary Coleman) and Willis (Bridges), who were from Harlem. The character of housekeeper Edna Garrett, played by Charlotte Rae, was spun off in 1979 into a second hit series, “Facts of Life,” which ran until 1988.

Plato, who played Bain’s daughter Kimberly, died in 1999 from an overdose when she was 34. Bain died of natural causes in January 2013, at age 89, while Rae died in August 2018 at 92.

Gary Coleman died in May 2010 at age 42 after suffering a brain hemorrhage in an accidental fall at his home in Utah.