Newly released 911 audio captures the desperate moments after Hayden Panettiere was found unconscious on August 16 in South Carolina. In the recording, obtained by ABC News through a Freedom of Information Act request to Greenville County EMS, the caller appears to be the brother of her former boyfriend, Brian Hickerson, according to ABC News.
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“Oh, god, oh, my god - you do like CPR or something?” the caller can be heard saying. It had previously been revealed that Zach Hickerson is who found her after arriving at the home after church, which matches the details of the call.
"[I] walked in after church to my brother and his girlfriend's apartment, and he woke up, and his girl ... .she's unconscious," the caller said.
The dispatcher quickly asks whether Panettiere is breathing. When the caller answers, “No,” the operator tells him that they need to begin CPR and starts walking him through the process.
© Backgrid/The Grosby Group“We need to start CPR. I’m going to tell you how to do CPR, OK?” the dispatcher says, instructing the caller to place Panettiere flat on her back and remove anything beneath her head.
As the caller attempts to help, the operator counts through the compressions, urging him to continue until emergency personnel can reach them. “We’re going to do this 500 times or until help can arrive, OK?” the dispatcher says.
When they arrived, first responders initiated advanced cardiac life support measures, but Panettiere was pronounced dead at approximately 2:32 p.m. on August 16, according to officials cited by ABC News.
Hayden Panettiere’s cause of death was ruled accidental
© Backgrid/The Grosby GroupIn September, the Greenville County Coroner’s Office determined that Panettiere died from the toxic effects of multiple substances, including fentanyl, 4-ANPP, alprazolam, methocarbamol and quetiapine.
Her death was ruled accidental, according to the previously released findings. The Greenville City Police Department is investigating with assistance from the Drug Enforcement Administration, ABC News reported. Authorities have not publicly established how the fentanyl entered her system.
The findings followed reports that Panettiere had recently sought treatment. According to Page Six, the actress had completed a two- to three-week stay at a treatment facility in Malibu, California, in the weeks before her death.
Her father, Skip Panettiere, reportedly informed investigators about the stay, while a member of the Hickerson family also said she had been at the facility weeks earlier.
Welfare check reportedly took place days before her death
The emergency call in South Carolina was not the only reported concern about Panettiere’s well-being in August. According to Us Weekly, which obtained a Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department call report, deputies conducted a welfare check at the actress’ West Hollywood apartment on August 9, exactly one week before she was found unconscious.
© GettyThe report was heavily redacted and did not name Panettiere, but a source familiar with the situation confirmed to the publication that the call concerned the Nashville star.
Someone reportedly contacted authorities around 10 p.m. after becoming concerned that a woman at the residence was not answering phone calls. When deputies arrived, they were allegedly told that the woman had been “sick all day” and “did not feel good.”
A source told Us Weekly that Brian Hickerson answered the door. The outlet also reported that Panettiere allegedly told a friend who visited her after a hospitalization that Hickerson had taken her phone. That claim has not been independently verified.
Hickerson has a documented history of domestic violence proceedings involving Panettiere. Following an April 2020 incident, he pleaded no contest to two felony counts and was sentenced in 2021 to 45 days in county jail, four years of probation and domestic violence classes. He was also subject to a five-year restraining order.
Wladimir Klitschko seeks to protect daughter Kaya’s inheritance
© GettyAs details surrounding Panettiere’s final weeks continue to emerge, her former fiancé, Wladimir Klitschko, is pursuing legal steps to protect the estate she left behind for their daughter, Kaya, 11.
Klitschko was granted temporary guardianship of Panettiere’s estate on October 9, according to the Los Angeles Times. He had petitioned a Los Angeles County court for authority to act on Kaya’s behalf, arguing that their daughter is the sole heir to the actress’ estate.
The legal dispute also involves concerns about Panettiere’s personal belongings. In court filings reported by TMZ and other outlets, Klitschko alleged that some of her jewelry and other items may be missing. He believes a non-family member previously connected to the actress may have sold belongings to a pawn shop, according to the filings.
The next hearing concerning permanent guardianship is scheduled for December 7, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Panettiere and Klitschko welcomed Kaya in 2014 and were previously engaged before ending their relationship in 2018. Klitschko has had full custody of their daughter since that year.
