The Los Angeles County Coroner’s Office has released the results of the autopsy performed on actor Paul Walker and driver Roger Rodas after the duo died in a high speed car crash on Saturday.
The autopsy revealed that Rodas (38), who was driving the 2005 Porsche GT at the time of the crash, died of multiple traumatic injuries. Walker’s cause of death was due to “combined effects of traumatic and thermal injuries.”
“What thermal injuries basically means is that the bodies were SEVERELY burned. When we say traumatic injuries, these injuries are consistent with injuries that typically occur in traffic accidents,” Captain Kades with the LA County Coroner’s Department told HollywoodLife.com. “They were SEVERELY burned.”
The report states, “Both deaths have been ruled by the coroner to be accidents.”
Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Office is still investigating the cause of the accident and claim speed was a factor. Sheriff’s detective Jeff Maag told People magazine that the driver “was doing well over 45 [mph] – [it’s] fair to say at least twice that.”
Walker was in the middle of filming the next installment of the Fast and the Furious franchise, Fast and the Furious 7, at the time of the crash. Universal Pictures, the studio filming the movie, released a statement today about the future of the franchise:
“Right now, all of us at Universal are dedicated to providing support to Paul’s immediate family and our extended Fast & Furious family of cast, crew and filmmakers,” the studio told E! News. “At this time we feel it is our responsibility to shut down production on Fast & Furious 7 for a period of time so we can assess all options available to move forward with the franchise.”
The statement added, “We are committed to keeping Fast & Furious fans informed, and we will provide further information to them when we have it. Until then, we know they join us in mourning the passing of our dear friend Paul Walker.”
Toxicology reports on Paul Walker and Roger Rodas are expected to be released in the next six to eight weeks.
