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Todd Meadows' death was a tragic blow to the crew of the Aleutian Lady and fans of "Deadliest Catch." Ten days after the accident, new details have come to light, including the efforts of Captain Rick Ashford and his crew to save Meadows.
On February 25, the reality show's title became painfully real when Meadows died in an accident while Discovery Channel cameras were rolling.
Although accounts were initially confusing, crew testimonies indicate that Meadows fell into the water due to an incident with one of the traps they use for fishing.
According to deckhand Trey John Green III, it was mid-afternoon and the sea appeared calm, but the water was only one or two degrees above freezing.
The crew's efforts to save Meadows
In an interview with Page Six, Green detailed how, when his crewmate fell into the water, Captain Shelford immediately turned the boat around until they were within a few feet of Meadows.
When they reached Meadows, designated rescue swimmer Steve Porter was ready, but "when Steve jumped in the water, the harness that was attached to the crane actually broke."
They were able to fix the problem by throwing another line into the water, and Meadows was still conscious, assisting Porter. But tragedy struck again when Meadows fell in once more.
The second time we went to lift him up, Todd was just... he was lifeless,"Green lamented. "He didn't have any more. Like I said, the first time, he was fighting, trying to get into the sling. And then the second time, he was just... he was lifeless.
The Coast Guard is still investigating Meadows' death
According to Green, his colleague was only in the water for about three or four minutes before they reached him. Tragically, by that time he was already "turning blue", and foam was coming from his mouth and nose.
"We finally brought him inside and continued CPR. The boat has an AED [machine], it's basically a defibrillator. And we tried to use that, too, and it just... nothing was working," Green recounted.
An official cause of Todd Meadows' death has not yet been released, but the Coast Guard is continuing its investigation. The entire incident was captured on Discovery Channel cameras and the ship's closed-circuit television system.