Brenna Cooper
The family of popular adventure YouTuber Andrew Cross have confirmed that he has passed away at the age of 36.
Andrew - who gained a large following after exploring national parks with a 'historical twist' on his Desert Drifter account - had suffered a traumatic brain injury earlier in the year after being involved in a serious car accident on 31 January, which had left him in need of life support.
It's understood that Andrew had been waiting at a traffic light while driving home from the Bears Ears monument, Utah, when his car was rear-ended by another vehicle travelling at a high speed.
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Since the crash, Andrew's family had shared regular updates with the 36-year-old's followers via their CaringBridge account.
It was here that Andrew's sister Jenna Spooner confirmed that he'd passed away on 4 March, following the difficult decision to remove his life support.
"Andrew’s spirit is free, surrounded by light & love," she wrote.
"He went to be with the Lord today, March 4 at 10:50 AM MST. It was peaceful and full of love in the room with Evelyn [Andrew's wife] by his side, his parents and close friends nearby."
She went on to explain that hospital staff had placed Andrew on a mobile ventilator prior to removing life support and wheeled him around the ICU while all available staff lined the hallway to form a guard of honour for the adventurer.
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"Andrew really lived life to the fullest, and his story & impact isn’t over yet," she added.
"It’s been wonderful to get to know him in new ways as we’ve seen photos and stories shared by so many. We look forward to more of that as we honour a life well lived."
The news that Andrew had been involved in a serious car crash was confirmed by his wife Evelyn in early February via heartbreaking a video on his YouTube account. "Friday night Andrew was in a really bad accident and he is currently in the intensive care unit fighting for his life," she explained in the video.
She then added that 'this community really meant a lot to him' and asked for prayers and good thoughts to be sent Andrew's way.
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Evelyn also explained to TMZ that the severity of Andrew's injuries had impacted his ability to regain consciousness, with the difficult decision to remove him from life support coming after noticing he was experiencing discomfort.
"We know that a life dependent on machines is not what Andrew wants," his sister added on CaringBridge.
TMZ added that Andrew's death had been confirmed by Mesa County Coroner’s Office in Colorado.
The driver of the other car was later arrested, with his charge of vehicular assault, reckless driving, careless driving, and driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs. The vehicular assault charge has since been amended to vehicular homicide.