Swamp People cast rocked by deaths and near-fatal incident for one alligator hunter
Swamp People is back on January 4 with its all-new season 15. Anna Ribbeck, Pickle, Troy Landry and the rest of the alligator hunters are back. As many familiar faces return to the show, fans’ minds are cast back to some cast members the show has lost along the way, and more who experienced near-death […]
Swamp People is back on January 4 with its all-new season 15. Anna Ribbeck, Pickle, Troy Landry and the rest of the alligator hunters are back. As many familiar faces return to the show, fans’ minds are cast back to some cast members the show has lost along the way, and more who experienced near-death incidents.
Swamp People has been airing for more than a decade and some of the show’s cast members have been appearing on screen since it first aired in 2010. The likes of Troy and Jacob Landry, Bruce Mitchell, and Willie Edwards are all original stars of the show. Over their 14 years on the History Channel show, the Lousiana residents sadly lost some of their co-stars.
Swamp People: Mitchell Guist’s death
It’s been more than a decade since Swamp People paid tribute to the late Mitchell Guist following his untimely death.
In 2012, the History Channel show remembered Mitchell during season 3 episode 14, Voodoo Bayou.
The late Swamp People star passed away suddenly at the age of 47 on May 14, 2012.
Mitchell reportedly died from “natural causes,” per CNN. Assumption Parish Sheriff Mike Waguespack told the outlet: “he was working to build a houseboat when he appeared to have a seizure and fell backwards in his boat…”
He appeared on the series alongside his brother, Glenn Guist, during seasons 2 and 3.
Mitchell’s obituary reads he was a “lifelong resident of Brittany” and his passions were “living off the Bayou, hunting and fishing.”
History Channel star ‘dies in crash’
Sadly, Mitchell Guist wasn’t the only Swamp People star to tragically lose his life.
Alum of the show, Randy Edwards, was just 35 years old when he passed away in a car crash.
Randy lost his life on September 15, 2018. The Advocate reported at the time the former Swamp People star passed after: “…crashing his car into a utility pole around 3 a.m. on LA 75 south of LA 66, State Police said. Impairment is suspected in the crash.”
He starred on the show from seasons 1 to 6 and appeared alongside his family members including his father, Junior, and mother, Theresa.
Tommy Chauvin’s near-death incident
Tommy Chauvin is no longer a Swamp People cast member as season 15 arrives. He appeared on the show from seasons 1 to 3, 6, and 8-9.
The stepson of Joe LaFont, Tommy began hunting deer in his early teens and went on to become an alligator hunter.
He was severely injured over four years ago after a traumatic incident which saw his right hand and thumb having to be amputated.
His GoFundMe page reads: “On July 11, 2019 Tommy was involved in an incident causing a blast injury to his entire body…”
The accident “ruptured his eardrums, damaged his eyes, and caused multiple abrasions on his chest and arms.”
Fans donated to his GoFundMe and said that they were “praying for a full recovery” for the reality TV star.
It wasn’t the first time that Tommy had been in a life-threatening accident. Back in 2012, TMZ reported he was involved in an “explosive five-car pile up.”
Thankfully, Tommy and his stepfather, Joe, were unharmed. The report states: “…three other people involved in the accident suffered serious injuries. There were no fatalities.”
WATCH SWAMP PEOPLE THURSDAYS AT 8/7C ON THE HISTORY CHANNEL