Producers of ABC’s “The Bachelor” franchise have released a statement on the death of Eric Hill, a contestant on Andi Dorfman’s upcoming season of “The Bachelorette.”

Per The Hollywood Reporter: “We are deeply saddened to hear about the tragic passing of our friend, Eric Hill. Eric inspired us every day with his passion, his courage and his adventurous spirit, and for that we are very thankful. On behalf of our cast, crew and producers, we send our love, our thoughts and our prayers to Eric’s family during this difficult time.”

“Bachelor” and “Bachelorette” host Chris Harrison took to Twitter to offer his condolences.

“On behalf of all of us at ‘The Bachelor’ our thoughts and prayers go out to the family of Eric Hill,” Harrison tweeted. “He will be missed.”

As we previously reported, Eric Hill died on April 23 due to injuries he sustained during a paragliding accident near Point of the Mountain in Draper, Utah, on Sunday. Hill’s canopy collapsed while he was 15 to 20 feet in the air, leaving him unconscious approximately 100 to 150 feet up the mountain. The extreme-sport enthusiast was brought by medical helicopter to the University of Salt Lake City hospital, where he was placed in a medically induced coma.

Eric Hill’s sister, Karen Tracy, confirmed his death on her Facebook page on Wednesday.

“Eric shared his final journey with us this morning as all his immediate family were able to be at his side when he passed away,” Tracy posted. “Thank you for all of your love and support and prayers and fasting. It was amazing to be with so many of his friends and family yesterday in the hospital who came to express their love for Eric. He gave us such a gift of a life fully lived and fully shared, and allowed us all to be a part of his last adventure here on earth. It is hard to think of life without his bright spark, but we know he is on to new adventures. We look forward to carrying on his legacy here and greeting him joyfully again someday. I love you so much, little brother!”

Hill was signed on to fight for Andi Dorfman’s heart on the upcoming season of “The Bachelorette,” which is set to premiere on May 19. According to Reality Steve, Hill had received the first one-on-one date of the season but ended up eliminated at some point down the line.

A world traveler, Eric Hill was in the process of filming a documentary called “The Global Odyssey.” Launching the website “Go With Eric” in February 2013, Hill had plans on setting the world travel record by visiting all 195 U.N. –recognized countries in less than three years, three months and six days.

RELATED STORIES
Twitter