Keith Nale, who was on Survivor: San Juan del Sur and Survivor: Cambodia, has dἰed. Members of Nale’s family told ET Online that he dἰed in Shreveport, Louisiana. He was 62 years old. Wes, who was also on Survivor: San Juan del Sur, said –
“He’d been battling cancer for the past few months and we found out about it in January.”
Firefighter Nale, who became a fan favorite, was never part of a long-term group, but he did make it all the way to the final four in 2014’s Survivor: San Juan del Sur thanks to his skill in Immunity Challenges, ET said.
Do you know that Anna Johnson Stanley, the mother of Andy Stanley and Becky Stanley Brodersen, dἰed on November 10, 2014, surrounded by her family and friends? She was 83 years old when she passed away:
He was kicked off the island a day before the Final Tribal Council, but he came back in 2015 for Survivor: Cambodia. Nale told Uproxx after coming in fourth place on Survivor: San Juan del Sur –
“You’re so close you can see it, you know what I mean. I want to say, ‘Well heck, I’d rather come in 10th than fourth or I’d rather come in 15th than fourth,’ but not really. You just feel like that at the moment.”
He also said that, even though he was 53 at the time, his fellow firefighters had been supportive and “impressed” by him. “Now granted that’s not 93, but that’s not 23 either.”
When Nale came back for season 31, he said in an episode –
“When do you get a second chance for something crazy like this?”
The winner of that season, Jeremy Collins, sent out a tweet with his condolences –
My condolences to the Big D, Wes, Austin and entire Nale family. You will be missed Keith but your legacy will live on. Rest in power my firefighter/survivor brother. #RIPOtis pic.twitter.com/K2f8sMfYHm
— Jeremy Collins (@jeremy2collins) April 19, 2023
Kelley Wentworth, a former contestant, posted a video of Nale driving her and other people across the beach. She called it her “favorite Survivor reward challenge… Keith Nale took us all away from the game for a short time, and this brief moment of ‘normal’ was unforgettable.”
She called Nale “a man with the purest heart, who brought humor into moments where it was needed most.” Our coverage of Keith Nale’s obituary concludes at this point. Now that he has gone, may his soul rest in peace.
