Phil Harris, captain of the Cornelia Marie who was featured in Discovery Channel’s popular reality show “Deadliest Catch” has died – he was 53.

Phil Harries suffered a massive stroke on January 29 and was brought to Anchorage, Alaska for surgery. His sons, Josh and Jake who were also part of the Deadliest Catch reality show which depicts the crab fishing industry off the dangerous waters of Alaska said in their Cornelia Marie website:

“It is with great sadness that we say goodbye to our dad – Captain Phil Harris. Dad has always been a fighter and continued to be until the end. For us and the crew, he was someone who never backed down.”