Newly released 911 audio has provided insight into the urgent efforts to saveHayden Panettiere after she was found unresponsive in a Greenville, South Carolina, apartment in August. The call was made on the afternoon of August 16, when a man entered his brother’s apartment and found his brother’s girlfriend unconscious.
During the seven-minute call, the operator guided the caller, identified in the police report as Zach Hickerson, the brother of Brian Hickerson, Panettiere’s ex-boyfriend, through CPR while emergency crews were on their way. Thecaller, breathing frantically, asked if anyone knew CPR. The operator replied, “We need to start CPR. I’m going to tell you how to do CPR, OK? We’re going to start with ventilation first. I need you to lay her flat on her back and remove anything from under her head.” The dispatcher counted chest compressions aloud as the caller followed instructions.
First responders arrived and “initiated advanced cardiac life support measures” but pronounced Panettiere dead at 2:32 p.m.
South Carolina law restricts releasing names through Freedom of Information Act requests, but officials confirmed the audio aligns with the date and address of the incident and matches public details of Panettiere’s death.
The Greenville City Police Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration are investigating the circumstances of Panettiere’s death, which the Greenville County Coroner’s Office ruled as an accidental overdose involving fentanyl.
