In his prime and at a time when his career was going really well, the life of Hollywood star Paul Walker was ended by a fatal accident that caused great pain to film lovers. Hollywood was plunged into mourning after the news of the actor’s sudden death leaked out and sent shock waves over the Internet amidst heartfelt tributes from fans in various parts of the world.
A few years later, some of us still haven’t got the hang of it, and there are still many questions about the actual circumstances of the actor’s death. Recently, updates have also surfaced that reveal some lesser-known facts about the fateful day when the life of a good American actor and philanthropist was snatched away. Here is what we know so far.
When And How Did Paul Walker Die?
Paradoxical as it sounds, the star of Fast and the Furious, who performed several hair-raising stunts on the set of the action film franchise, mostly from high-speed vehicles, lost his life in real life when a car in which he was driving crashed at a speed of almost 100 miles per hour.
The unfortunate incident occurred on Saturday, November 30, 2013, when Walker was in the passenger seat of a Porsche Carrera GT driven by his friend and financial advisor Roger Rodas. Walker, 40, and Rodas, 38, were together at an event when they had to leave for the actor’s charity Reach Out Worldwide, founded for the victims of Typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda).
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The coroner’s report shows that Rodas was driving at an unsafe speed for unknown reasons – between 130 km/h (80 mph) and 150 km/h (93 mph) in a speed zone of 72 km/h (45 mph). At some point, he lost control of the fancy car, which spun 180 degrees and skidded off the road onto the sidewalk. The driver’s side of the car first crashed into two trees, followed by a final crash into a concrete lamppost, which appears to be the straw that broke the camel’s backbone when the Porsche went up in flames shortly after. Previously, the result of the collisions with the trees and the lamppost had split the car almost from the middle.
In the tragedy on Hercules Street near the Kelly Johnson Parkway in Valencia, Santa Clarita, California, Rodas died as a result of multiple trauma. Sadly, Walker (as in the movies) could not escape it, as he too succumbed to the consequences of the trauma, followed by the burns the two friends suffered after the car burst into flames. Both corpses were indistinguishable due to the burns. After a thorough examination, it was concluded that there was no foul play. It is also important that no traces of alcohol or drugs were found in their system, i.e. – the driver did not operate under the influence of anything. Furthermore, at the time of the accident, there was no drag racing going on.
Walker’s body was later laid to rest after a non-denominational ceremony in Forest Lawn Memorial Park.
New Details About His Death
It has been five years since the celebrated actor passed away, and many still have to come to terms with his painful death. Every now and then new details about the last days of the actor emerge and about the things that would have saved his life if it had been done differently.
While forensic reports show that the bend where both men fell to their deaths is known for drifting cars and no mechanical failure or even road conditions contributed to the accident, blaming it all on the speed of the car and the age of the tires, eyebrows are still raised over the whole incident.
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Approximately two years after his death, Paul Walker’s father, Paul William Walker III, joined the daughter of the late actor – Meadow Walker – to file a wrongful death suit against Porsche. According to the lawsuit, the car company was aware of design flaws in the Porsche Carrera GT and its history of instability. It was also argued that its safety belt was designed to be lethal in a collision. In response, Porsche rejected the claims and said Walker knew the risks involved from the outset. In the end, Porsche won the case but came to an agreement with the bereaved.
New details from the documentary film (I Am Paul Walker), which documented the life of the actor, revealed that Paul Walker might have been alive to complete “Furious 7” if he had not received a text reminding him of an event he had to attend. His mother, Cheryl Walker, recounts how the late actor talked to his daughter about decorating the Christmas tree of the year and was in the best of moods and completely forgot the event when he received the reminder and had to leave. The next time the family would see him, he was burned beyond recognition.
