The medics dispatched to the Clearwater Beach, Florida, home of professional wrestler Hulk Hogan tried to keep him alive with chest compressions as they brought him outside to carry him to a waiting ambulance, according to a TikToker’s video.
But Hogan couldn’t be revived, and the charismatic, controversial WWE legend died early Thursday morning at age 71.
A news alert issued by the Clearwater Police Department said that police and fire department personnel were dispatched to Hogan’s home in Clearwater Beach at 9:51 a.m. Thursday. The nature of the call was cardiac arrest.
Clearwater fire and rescue crews tried to treat Hogan, whose real name is Terry Bollea, at the scene before he was transported by ambulance to a nearby hospital. He was pronounced dead at the hospital.
The TikTok video shows a large crew of rescue personnel carrying Hogan on a stretcher down the front stairs of his home. At one point, several paramedics appear be performing chest compressions on Hogan before he is wheeled to the emergency vehicle.
ESPN reported that Hogan had been struggling with several health issues in recent years, including a problematic, lingering back injury from his wrestling days. Hogan had not wrestled since 2012 but had been in the news recently as a founder of the new Real American Freestyle wrestling promotion and the owner of an upcoming New York City bar opposite Madison Square Garden, the site of many of his big matches.
Hogan also was in the news last summer when he spoke at the Republican National Convention and tore off his shirt to reveal a Trump/Vance shirt underneath, according to the New York Times.
Hogan was the face of pro wrestling for decades, with his blond hair and horseshoe mustache, colorful bandannas and massive biceps, which he referred to as “24-inch pythons,” the New York Times reported.
He was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2005. After his wrestling career ended, Hogan became embroiled in controversy, according to ESPN. In 2015, video recordings of him using the N-word and referring to himself as a “racist” leaked, prompting WWE to terminate his legends contract. But WWE brought him back three years later as an ambassador with infrequent television appearances. Hogan also appeared on WWE’s Netflix debut show in January to promote his new Real American Beer but was booed by the fans in Los Angeles.
Hogan also was recorded in a sex tape that was leaked by the website Gawker in 2015. Hogan subsequently sued for defamation, loss of privacy and emotional pain, winning the case and an award of $115 million.
