Actor Paul Walker died in a car crash in Southern California on Saturday afternoon, according to TMZ.com. He was 40 years old.
Citing multiple sources close to Walker, the report said the star of the “Fast and the Furious” movies and an unidentified companion died immediately after the new Porsche GT they were riding “slammed into a post or a tree … and then the car burst into flames”.
A post on his Facebook page confirmed the news and said his companion was driving the car.
“It is with a truly heavy heart that we must confirm that Paul Walker passed away today in a tragic car accident while attending a charity event for his organization Reach Out Worldwide. He was a passenger in a friend’s car, in which both lost their lives. We appreciate your patience as we too are stunned and saddened beyond belief by this news. Thank you for keeping his family and friends in your prayers during this very difficult time. We will do our best to keep you apprised on where to send condolences,” the message said.
Walker was in Santa Clarita, a city located 53 kilometers north of Los Angeles, attending a car show to raise money for typhoon victims in the Philippines.
The car show was a charity event for Reach Out Worldwide, the disaster relief organization he founded in 2010 after joining earthquake relief efforts in Chile and Haiti. Reach Out Worldwide has sent medical teams to areas in the Visayas ravaged by supertyphoon Yolanda.
Last week, the actor and his co-stars on ‘Fast & Furious 7″appealed to fans of the film series to donate to the relief efforts in the Philippines in a video shot on the set of the film and uploaded to YouTube by Reach Out Worldwide.
Walker made his film feature debut in the 1998 comedy “Meet the Deedles”, followed by supporting roles in “Pleasantville”, “Varsity Blues”, “She’s All That” and “The Skulls”.
His breakthrough role came in 2001′s “The Fast and the Furious” as Brian O’Conner, an undercover detective who infiltrates the street race scene in Los Angeles to help solve a series of semi-trailer truck hijackings in the area.
The film turned into a franchise that released its sixth installment earlier this year. In May, Walker and co-stars Vin Diesel and Michelle Rodriguez came to Manila to attend the Asian premiere of “Fast & Furious 6″.
It was not yet known if he had finished filming “Fast & Furious 7″, which is set for release on July 14, 2014.
source: interaksyon.com