‘Deadliest Catch’: What Happened to Justin Tennison?

Deadliest Catch is no stranger to tragedy. Over the years, multiple disasters and cast member deaths have rocked the Discovery Channel reality series, including Captain Phil Harris’ fatal stroke in 2010 and the 2021 accident that killed F/V Patricia Lee crew member Todd Kochutin. The show also faced the loss of deckhand Justin Tennison, who was found dead in an Alaskan hotel room in 2011. 

Justin Tennison was a deckhand on the F/V Time Bandit 

Deadliest Catch viewers met Tennison in season 7, when he was working on the F/V Time Bandit. He was a second cousin of Eddie Uwekooolani, who helped him get the job on the ship. Uwekoolani also appeared on the show, which follows fishermen as they head out into the rough waters of the Bering Sea to hunt for crab. 

Tennison served as an engineer during the tendering seasons and later joined the Time Bandit as a deckhand for the Red King season in 2010 and the Opilio season in 2011, The Wrap reported. 

Before his death, Tennison and his cousin had discussed the possibility that they could die while at sea. 

“We’ve talked about … how living in a high-risk job you never know,” Uwekoolani told ABC News. “His last wishes were to be cremated and taken out to the water for one long trip.” 

The ‘Deadliest Catch’ cast member died in 2011 

While crab fisherman put their lives at risk every time they head out on the water, Tennison actually died while on land. Hotel staff discovered his body in a Best Western in Homer, Alaska, in February 2011. He was 33. 

Police found alcohol and a small amount of marijuana in Tennison’s room. But an autopsy revealed that his death was due to complications related to sleep apnea, according to People.

Uwekoolani had last seen Tennison shortly before his death. 

“That evening, he came down to the boat about 10 o’clock, and I had one drink with him and took off to my house with my grandson and son, and next morning called to find out if he was coming to work,” he told ABC News. “I never got a hold of him. I texted him. I just thought he didn’t make it to work.”

Justin Tennison’s ‘Deadliest Catch’ co-stars remembered him

After Tennison’s death, his fellow Time Bandit crew members and Deadliest Catch co-stars shared a tribute to to their late colleague. 

“Justin was tough as a bull and was an all-around good hand,” read a statement posted to the Time Bandit’s website (via ABC News). “We will miss him terribly and wish his family all the best during this most difficult time.”

Uwekoolani remembered his cousin as a family man and passionate outdoorsman.

“He loved Alaska,” he said. “He loved hunting and fishing and everything about it. He loved his kids tremendously.”

Deadliest Catch Season 19 airs Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET on Discovery Channel.  Episodes also stream on discovery+.

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