The death of deckhand Todd Meadows will not be shown when Deadliest Catch returns for its 22nd season on Friday, May 8, on the Discovery Channel. However, the show will pay tribute to the cast member.
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What Happened to "Deadliest Catch" Cast Member Todd Meadows?
As we reported last month, Meadows, aged 25, died on Feb. 25 during filming of the new season of Deadliest Catch. He "fell overboard" while working on the Aleutian Lady fishing vessel off the Alaskan coast.
Another deckhand, Trey John Green III, said the temperature was just below freezing on February 25. This made the water frigid at the time of Meadows' death.
Green shared that the Deadliest Catch deckhand went overboard after an issue with a crab pot.
"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," he said.
The boat's rescue swimmer, Steve Porter, managed to get Meadows into a sling and halfway out of the water. Then he fell back in. Green said Meadows was in the water for only three or four minutes.
It was later reported that Meadows died from "drowning with probable hypothermia" and "submersion of body in cold water," according to his death certificate, which was issued on March 6.
How Will the Show Pay Tribute to Meadows?
PEOPLE reports a tribute to Meadows will be shown during the season premiere, highlighting how his death affected the crew of the Aleutian Lady.
Captain Rick Shelford said in his Facebook tribute to Meadows that the deckhand "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. Rest easy brother, till we meet again."
Deadliest Catch will also show the Aleutian Lady crew hunting down a rare creature.
"For the first time in decades, the captains abandon familiar fishing grounds to chase a rare breed of Red King Crab lurking in the frozen waters of the far North," says the season's official synopsis. "This elusive catch, worth a fortune, pushes the fleet into remote territory and tests their experience and resilience at the edge of the world."
