Darrell Ward, star of the History channel’s Ice Road Truckers, tragically died at age 52 in a plane crash near Rock Creek, Montana. According to KPAX Channel 8, the reality personality was one of two victims who passed away in the fatal aircraft accident.
Confirmation of the devastating news came in a press release posted to Ward’s Facebook page late Sunday night.
“Darrell Ward had just left The Great American Truck Show in Dallas, Texas, where he enjoyed meeting numerous fans and friends and was heading to Missoula to begin filming a pilot for his new documentary style show involving the recovery of plane wrecks when he and his co-pilot crashed and lost their lives,” the statement read. “An investigation is ongoing and more information will be made available at a later time as the National Transportation Safety Board will be handling they investigation.”
The press release went on to say that the self-proclaimed “adrenaline junkie” — who had more than thirty years of highway trucking experience and enjoyed log hauling and fighting forest fires — left behind “his kids and grandkids,” whom he “loved most.”
“Trucking has always been a large part of Darrell’s life; from running the harvest rigs with his grandparents and family, to driving trucks from Montana to Alaska and all roads in between,” the release continued. “In his free time, you could usually find Darrell giving back to the community any chance he got, he had promoted the most recent food drive to help victims in the Louisiana Floods and was scheduled to appear as the grand marshal for the Truck Convoy for Special Olympics in Nova Scotia.”
The History channel took to Facebook on Monday morning to share their condolences for Ward. “We are saddened by the tragic loss of Darrell Ward, a beloved member of the HISTORY family,” the network wrote. “He will be greatly missed and our thoughts are with his family during this difficult time.”
The 10th season of Ice Road Truckers, which includes Ward and his partner, Lisa Kelly, premiered on August 4. The late adventure-seeker quickly became a fan favorite on the docuseries because of his fearless attitude and his penchant for helping other truckers out — even his rivals.
Missoula County Sheriff’s Deputy Ryan Dunster told KPAX Channel 8 that an investigation regarding the cause of the wreck is underway. Funeral plans have not yet been announced.
