'Wicked Tuna: Outer Banks' cast member William 'Willbilly' Hathaway, 36, dies after car crash
The Wicked Tuna family is grieving after William Joseph “Willbilly” Hathaway died after a car crash on Saturday in Salisbury, Md. The 36-year-old appeared on the spinoff, Wicked Tuna: Outer Banks.
Maryland State Police told local CBS affiliate WBOC 16 that a concerned citizen called to report having seen a truck in a ditch, which turned out to be Hathaway’s, just after 4 p.m. Saturday. Hathaway himself reportedly called his wife, Mary, around that time to say that he was OK but that he’d driven into a ditch after someone cut him off. However, emergency medical responders said, by the time they arrived, Hathaway was not breathing. He was pronounced dead at a local hospital.
Hathaway was part of the “Foolish Pleasures” crew from Ocean City, Md.
Following his death, the local fishing community set up a Facebook page to raise money for Hathaway’s wife and their baby daughter. As of Monday afternoon, they had raised more than $58,000. Their goal is to raise $250,000.
“On December 15 Mary’s husband William Joseph Hathaway a.k.a Willbilly passed away suddenly in a car accident,” the fundraiser description reads. “He was an exceptional human being whose passion was the sea. He always brightened the day of anyone he met. His wife and new born baby girl he was most proud of. Due to his untimely death we are asking for donations to help them stay on their feet while trying to survive this tragedy. Thank you in advance. The Ocean City Fishing Community”
The cast of the National Geographic Channel’s reality show about commercial tuna fisherman lost another cast member, Nicholas “Duffy” Fudge, on July 19. He was 28. No cause of death was given.
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