‘Deadliest Catch’ Lead Nick Mavar Dies At 59

Nick Mavar, an Alaskan ship captain that stars in the reality television show ‘Deadliest Catch,’ has reportedly died at the age of 59.

Mavar’s death comes as a shock to fans of the show, who have had a window into Mavar’s life through the popular television show for nearly two decades.

The commercial salmon fisherman appeared in 98 total episodes of the hit show over the last 16 years. He reportedly died at a hospital in King Salmon, Alaska.

The reality television star allegedly died after having a heart attack while on a ladder at a boatyard in Naknek, Alaska. He fell onto a deck, and was afterwards rushed to a nearby hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Sig Hansen, a friend who worked with Mavar for 25 years, posted the following message to his Facebook in remembrance of the late star,

“I have known nick mavar for my entire fishing career, he has worked on our family boat for 25 plus years. He was more than a crew member, he was a very good friend and a right hand man. The passing of nick mavar spread through the fishing community like wild fire. This is no surprise because of how well known and respected he was by the fishing fleet.”

Hansen, the same individual who made this post, had sued Mavar last year over a healthcare dispute. Alaska Public posted about that lawsuit at the time,

“The owners of a fishing boat featured in “Deadliest Catch” are suing the reality TV show’s producers after one of their deckhands claimed he did not get adequate medical care, resulting in serious complications.

The lawsuit was filed by the F/V Northwestern’s owners Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Alaska. It follows the deckhand’s own lawsuit, filed against the boat owners in Washington court in December.

That deckhand, Nick Mavar Jr., was a longtime cast member on the Discovery Channel show. His attorneys say that during a December 2020 voyage he suffered a rupture in his appendix, which contained a cancerous tumor he wasn’t aware of at the time.  

Mavar’s attorneys fault the Northwestern’s owners for failing to have Mavar quickly and competently examined, and for failing to have a medical plan in place for treating crew members during the pandemic.”

Rest in peace Nick Mavar!