Deadliest Catch will reportedly pay tribute to late deckhand Todd Meadows when the reality series returns next month.
Meadows, 25, died in February after falling overboard from the Aleutian Lady, a boat featured on the high-risk Discovery Channel show.
The next season will begin airing May 8, and will include scenes that Meadows filmed in the weeks before his death.
Variety reports that the premiere episode will include a tribute to Meadows and reflections on the loss from fellow members of the Aleutian Lady crew, but that the series will not at any point air footage of the fatal incident out of respect for the late deckhand’s family.
Captain Rick Shelford, who has been a regular on the show since 2023, has described the accident as the “most tragic day in the history of the Aleutian Lady.”
Shelford continued: “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.”
A spokesperson for Discovery Channel said at the time that the death of Meadows was “a devastating loss,” adding: “We are deeply saddened by the tragic passing of Todd Meadows. Our hearts are with his loved ones, his crewmates, and the entire fishing community during this incredibly difficult time.”
He was survived by his wife and three children.
Deadliest Catch premiered in 2005, following a group of king crab fishermen in Alaska as they embarked on the perilous journey to catch the seafood delicacy in the Bering Sea. The title is inspired by the high risk of injury or death linked to the line of work.
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The logline for the new season reads: “With a new king crab population appearing far north, the fleet relocates 225 miles to St. George Island, facing colder weather and more extreme seas than any season before as they work to sustain their livelihoods in rapidly changing waters.
“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. This elusive catch, worth a fortune, pushes the fleet into remote territory and tests their experience and resilience at the edge of the world.”
In 2019, a boat set to appear on Deadliest Catch: Dungeon Cove capsized in Newport, Oregon, killing three fisherman: Joshua Porter, 50, James Lacy, 48 and Stephen Biernacki, 50.