The nephew of surfing icon Bethany Hamilton tragically died days after he was found unconscious in a bathtub, his family has revealed.
Andrew Samuel Hamilton, 3, died Thursday in Oahu, Hawaii, days after suffering injuries in the drowning incident at his home.
“It hurts terribly and we miss Andrew more than words can express,” his father said in a heartbreaking Instagram post.
Bethany previously shared her family’s heartbreak after Andrew was found in their home, urging fans to pray for a medical miracle for her ‘precious’ nephew.
Andrew Samuel Hamilton, 3, died Thursday in Oahu, Hawaii, days after suffering injuries in the drowning incident at his home.
The boy is the nephew of surfing icon Bethany Hamilton, who previously urged fans to pray for a medical miracle for her ‘precious’ nephew.
In his message announcing Andrew’s death, the boy’s father said it came only after “all the best life-saving interventions had been exhausted.”
He said he will be mourned by his many loved ones and “his family in Christ,” whose “constant prayers at Andrew’s bedside and preaching of God’s words to our broken hearts have sustained our souls this past week.”
“It hurts terribly and we miss Andrew more than words can express,” she continued.
‘But we do not mourn like those who have no hope. We rejoice in the certain hope of the glory of God, in whose name Andrew was baptized, whose precious blood washed Andrew and made him son and heir of heaven.’
The post was met with an outpouring of support, with fans of their surfing icon aunt sending their condolences to the grieving family.
Andrew (pictured bottom row, center, surrounded by his family) was rushed to hospital after he was found unconscious in a bathtub at his home.
Pictured: Little Andrew and his family, who said his tragic death came only after “all the best life-saving interventions were exhausted.”
Bethany, a well-known shark attack survivor, told her fans after Andrew was hospitalized: “We are devastated.” But I know how the right medical support can make or break a person’s chances of survival.
“In this case we are asking for help from anyone who has information on what we can do to give my nephew the best chance.”
Bethany’s brother Noah, who is not Andrew’s father, also asked people for prayers and called his little nephew a “strong, resilient boy” and an “incredible swimmer.”
He wrote: ‘Please join us in praying for my brother’s fifth youngest son, Andrew, as he flew to Oahu in the middle of the night.
He is three and a half and five years old. He is a strong, resilient boy and an incredible swimmer. They found him not breathing in the shallow water of the bathtub. His vital signs were enough to get him to Oahu.
For Andrew’s treatment, the family was able to connect with Dr. Paul Harch, a world-renowned expert in hyperbaric oxygen therapy for child drowning.
It was his son who notified Bethany under his title: ‘Dr. Harch is my father. I just sent you a message with his cell phone number. He wants you to call him. Sending lots of love to you and your family.”
For Andrew’s treatment, the family was able to contact Dr. Paul Harch (pictured), a world-renowned expert in hyperbaric oxygen therapy in cases of child drowning.
Bethany is best known for a shark attack at age 13 that nearly derailed her career.
Bethany is best known for a shark attack at age 13 that nearly derailed her career.
In 2003, while surfing off the coast of Kauai with a friend’s family, a 14-foot tiger shark tore off his left arm, just below the shoulder.
The others were able to swim her to shore and put a tourniquet on her, but by the time she got to the hospital she had already lost 60 percent of her blood.
A tiger shark that was captured and killed shortly after the attack had pieces of a surfboard lodged in its jaws, and was later determined to have been the attacking shark.
Despite her devastating injury, Bethany took less than a month to recover before returning to surfing, and had her first professional competition after the attack in 2004.