Jesse Goins Passed Away on the 'Gold Rush' Set

You're most likely familiar with Discovery's popular reality series Gold Rush: Dave Turin’s Lost Mine, which depicts the lives of real-life gold miners who spend their time attempting to — well — get rich. But the series was completely rocked when a cast member named Jesse Goins passed away on-set at only 60 years old. The miner's family members and friends, as well as his co-stars from the Alaska reality series, were completely devastated. 

What actually happened to Jesse Goins? Keep reading for everything we know about the reality star's premature death, and how his friends and family are handling this major loss.

On Tuesday, Aug. 18, 2020, gold miner Jesse Goins had been filming Discovery's popular reality series Gold Rush: Dave Turin’s Lost Mine somewhere out in Colorado. That evening, according to TMZ, Jesse was found lying unconscious just outside of what is known as the "gold room" by a crew member on the set of the show. The "gold room" is where the miners clean and separate the gold, and as he was a prominent gold room operator, it's assumed he was coming from there when he passed out. 

Apparently, the Discovery show had an on-site medic, who rushed to the scene. They were able to administer CPR until EMTs arrived. The EMTs brought Jesse to the hospital but it was too late. Jesse died from what is believed to have been from a heart attack but his exact cause of death is still unconfirmed. Needless to say, the gold mining community, as well as fans of the show, were completely stunned by this major loss.

The immediate fallout from Jesse's death was shown on the show. During what begins as a normal operation, the goldmine workers suddenly hear Dave Turn shout, "No duff! No duff!" over the radio and call for everyone to meet at their nearest muster point. Dave meets them there and discloses the tragic news of Jesse's heart attack.

The phrase "No duff" originates from the RAF. Essentially, it means that a message is not a drill or an exercise and is instead meant to be taken seriously. It has the added meaning that all operations should stop until further notice, and that radio channels should remain clear for further communications.

Jesse is survived by at least one brother named Larry, who took to Facebook with a seriously tear-jerking tribute to the beloved gold miner. The post reads: 

"Heaven will never be the same!! My brother Jesse went home to be with his Father, Lord and Savior. He will be missed dearly. Love you brother."

Jesse also left behind a wife, whose name is not public, as well as his partner-in-crime on the reality show, Dave Turin, whom he explored gold mines with for a living. Dave has not yet spoken out about his co-star's death, however, we can't imagine how tough this loss must be for the Alaskan gold miner. The two seemed incredibly close, and Jesse had appeared in 15 episodes of the popular series.

Fans were also shocked by the news. In response to Larry's Facebook post, one user wrote: "Larry, I am so very sad to hear about Jesse. I was so enjoying watching him in the gold mining show."

Fellow co-star Nathan Clark also shared a touching tribute to the late Jesse on Facebook, writing: "I'm truly lost for words right now. ... Jesse Goins was the kindest soul you could ever have met. Jesse would give up his meal for the man next to him that was not as hungry. He was that man... He was the funniest man in times of need. Jesse kept #TeamTurin going always."

"The world needs people like Jesse. I know he's in heaven running double lines of gold down that table that overflows his cups. He was so fun to take pictures of. I have hugged, laughed, and cried with Jesse. He was friend and brother to me. I called him my little leprechaun because he always got that gold so clean. I love you always Jesse!"

Jesse's death was completely unexpected, and this loss has seriously affected the miner's friends, family, fans of the show, and the cast and crew members from the beloved Discovery series. RIP, Jesse Goins, you will be greatly missed.