Catherine O'Hara was hospitalized in serious condition at 5 a.m., shortly before her passing.
Fresh data on Catherine O'Hara's health struggle is emerging. After fighting an unexplained illness, the Home Alone star passed away in Los Angeles on January 30 at the age of 71. Additionally, a Los Angeles Fire Department official informed several publications that she was taken to a hospital in "serious condition" the morning before she passed away.
According to People, officials were contacted at 4:48 a.m. on January 30 regarding an unidentified woman who lived at O'Hara's Los Angeles home and was "approximately 70 years old." She was rushed to the hospital after they arrived at the site, where she passed away later that day.
The Los Angeles Fire Department was contacted by news organizations for comment, but they have not received a response.
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There are more glimpses of O'Hara's last moments besides her hospital stay. The actress was represented by the Creative Artists Agency, which earlier informed news organizations that she had died in Los Angeles "following a brief illness."
Yet O'Hara's illness and formal cause of death were not made public.
The Schitt's Creek star, who is survived by her husband Bo Welch and their children Luke Welch, 28, and Matthew Welch, 32, was open about her condition prior to her death, disclosing that she had been diagnosed with cardiac inversus, also known as dextrocardia with situs inversus.
O'Hara's career in comedy was somewhat influenced by her unique congenital abnormality, which causes a person's heart and other internal organs to be on the opposite side of the body.
In March, she told Variety, "There's no better survival instinct," adding that it is her responsibility as a comic to "look for the light."
O'Hara continued, “My parents were both really funny, and a sense of humor was always appreciated. Laughing and being funny was highly encouraged at our table."
In poignant condolences after her passing, a number of The Studio actress's friends and co-stars emphasized her love of making people laugh.
"What a gift to have gotten to dance in the warm glow of Catherine O’Hara’s brilliance for all those years," on January 30, Dan Levy, who starred opposite her on Schitt's Creek, posted on Instagram. "I will cherish every funny memory I was fortunate enough to make with her."
