Paul Harrell is dead after a battle with pancreatic cancer.
The popular YouTuber and gun-rights activist shared the news in a posthumous video on his channel titled, “I’m dead.”
“If you’re watching me, I’m dead,” the Oregon-based content creator told his 1.14 million subscribers. The six-minute clip from “beyond the grave,” was filmed in December 2023, with his family publishing it following his death on Tuesday.
Harrell made the announcement while sitting on a log in a forest, the very spot where he first told his subscribers about his diagnosis with Stage 2 pancreatic cancer.
Initially, Harrell was optimistic, telling fans his cancer had been “caught early” and he would “be here for some time.” But in his posthumous video, Harrell went on to detail how his health took a turn for the worse.
“We did catch it early but not as early as I had thought,” Harrell told fans. “It has spread faster than I thought it would. My time is drawing very short.”
Using crutches after fracturing his hip — an injury he revealed was triggered by his cancer after it spread to his bones and caused them to “crumble” — the YouTuber offered his “sincere apologies” to fans who would be shocked over his sudden death.
“I had hoped that I would continue in this format for the next 10 or even 15 years,” he said. “Even once I was diagnosed I’d hoped that we’d be here for at least two or three more years and that’s turned out to be only a few more months.”
“My apologies for that. It makes me feel like I’ve let everybody down,” Harrell added.
The comments section of the video was met with nothing but love for Harrell, with many praising the firearms expert for all he’s done for the community.
“Thank you Paul for everything!,” one fan wrote, with another commenting on Harrell’s “dark” sense of humor.
“Even beyond the grave, the sense of humor is dark but appropriate,” the fan wrote. “We’ll miss you Paul.”
“This is the worst notification I’ve ever gotten,” another heartbroken supporter added. “RIP Paul.”
The clip ended with a message from his editor and manager, Brad Nelson.
“I had the great privilege of having Paul in my life and having him as a friend,” Nelson told viewers. “He is very generous and a kind guy and he told the best campfire stories.”
In addition for advocating for gun owner rights, Harrel used his channel to share knowledge about gun safety and accurate shooting.
