Street Outlaws star Ryan Fellows was killed in a car crash while filming a race for the series. He was 41.
“The Street Outlaws family is heartbroken by the accident that led to the tragic death of Ryan Fellows. We extend our deepest sympathy to Ryan’s loved ones as they process this sudden and devastating loss,” read a tweet from the Discovery show’s official Twitter account on Monday, August 8.
TMZ was first to report the news, noting that the crash occurred outside Las Vegas on Sunday, August 7. Fellows was driving a gold Nissan 240z and lost control of the vehicle near the finish line while racing another driver for an episode. The car rolled and caught fire. Filming reportedly stopped for the rest of the day after the accident.
Fellows is survived by wife Liz and children Josiah, 18, and Olivia, 10. In the wake of the tragedy, a GoFundMe was set up to help the late TV star’s family through their difficult time.
“Ryan was an avid car enthusiast and was a road ‘warrior’ in many ways that extended to loves of basketball, cars and business in sales/advertising,” the description of the fundraiser reads. “He was admired for tenacity and a relentless drive to overcome the challenges before him. The only thing he loved more than these efforts and achievements were his family.”
Fans have raised more than $11,000 so far in Fellows’ honor. “The family will need help with the next steps of grief and living life after losing the heart and soul of their beautiful family,” the site notes.
Street Outlaws premiered in 2013 and is currently in its 13th season. In September 2020, the series experienced another unexpected loss when Christopher Scott Ellis (a.k.a “Kentucky”) was found dead at home in Oklahoma. The mechanic was 39. Authorities did not suspect foul play at the time, and Ellis was reportedly discovered with a liquor bottle and syringe nearby.
Earlier this year, another crash occurred on the set of the street racing series. JJ Da Boss and his wife, Tricia Day, were driving separate cars when they were involved in a collision in January, per TMZ. Day shared an update on the duo’s recovery three months later.
“Thank you and shout-out to everybody for thinking of me and JJ and praying for us,” she said in a Facebook video in April. “JJ and I had that accident and it was rough on us. But we’re both still here, thankfully. You know, the good Lord, he was with us. We had our angels. … We are two weeks into starting walking. So that is a huge, huge thing for JJ and I because I just — I guess I maybe took for granted a bit, you know, having my legs and everything that I’ve been blessed with.”
She continued, “Our family, we have a huge family [and] I love everything about having that. But when situations like that come about and … it really put a damper on my lifestyle and JJ’s and my entire family.”
