A dramatic 15-second call that sends first responders to Matthew Perry’s Los Angeles home refers to “drowning,” an audio tape reveals.
Perry’s assistant made an urgent call to 911, which was not published, after the Friends star went into cardiac arrest in his hot tub on Saturday.
Now a recording of the moment emergency services arrived on the scene has been shared, describing a drowning – known as a medical emergency 9.
In a chilling recording of the dispatch, during which certain words are broadcast, a first responder says: “Officer 23. Rescue 23. EMS 9 on the radio. In response to the drowning.’
The Friends star, 54, was found dead at his home in the exclusive Pacific Palisades neighborhood on Saturday, and tributes have been pouring in ever since.
The Los Angeles County coroner has listed Matthew Perry’s cause of death as “deferred” pending final toxicology test results.
Matthew Perry is pictured on October 22, the last time he was seen in public. His cause of death is being postponed pending toxicology tests
Aerial photos show Perry’s pool and hot tub where he was found dead Saturday
On Saturday evening, coroners are seen removing Perry’s body from his LA home
On Sunday afternoon, the coroner released his body to the family, but said they have not yet determined a cause of death.
The medical examiner’s office may release initial results within days, but it could also take six to eight weeks for final results from toxicology tests to come back.
An LAPD source told The New York Post, “We responded to the 1800 block of Blue Sail Rd at 4:10 this afternoon for an investigation into the death of a man. He was in his fifties.’
No drugs were found at the scene and authorities ruled out foul play.
Sources did say that antidepressants and anti-anxiety drugs, including pills for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), were found at the property.
Friends have said the star appeared ‘tired’ in his final days, and in his final Instagram post, shared earlier this week, he posted pictures of him in his pool.
The caption read: ‘Oh, so the warm water swirling around makes you feel good? I’m Mattman.’
Perry had a long struggle with drugs and alcohol, was a smoker and had multiple health problems.
Perry wrote in his memoir published last year that he spent $9 million to get sober. He revealed that he had attended 6,000 AA meetings, been to rehab 15 times and been in detox 65 times.
After Perry’s death, photos emerged of the pool and hot tub at the Friends star’s home (pictured)
In his latest Instagram post, posted earlier this week, the star shared images of him in his pool
The coroner arrives at Perry’s property on Saturday evening
Matthew Perry’s father John Bennett Perry, 82, was seen arriving at his son’s LA home just hours after the Friends star’s death looking stricken.
A 1997 jet ski accident on the set of his film Fools Rush In left him hospitalized and later became addicted to the opioid painkiller Vicodin.
He said at one point he was taking 55 Vicodin pills a day and his weight dropped to 128 pounds.
In 2000 he was taken to hospital with pancreatitis and in 2018 his colon burst.
“The doctors told my family I had a 2% chance of living,” Perry told Diane Sawyer during a promotional interview for his book.
‘I was given a so-called ECMO machine, which does all the breathing for your heart and lungs. And that’s called a Hail Mary. No one survives that.’
Perry spent nearly two weeks in a coma and five months in the hospital, after which he used a colostomy bag for nine months.
He said he overcame his addiction in 2021 and was living a healthier lifestyle.
Perry rose to fame for his role as Chandler Bing on the hit ’90s sitcom Friends, which ran for ten seasons
Perry, who never married but dated a number of stars including Julia Roberts, has been outspoken and public about his problems with drugs and alcohol.
He told an interviewer in 2016 that he doesn’t remember filming three seasons of Friends.
Despite hiding his demons from the public for years, Perry detailed his struggles in his 2022 memoir, Friends, Lovers And The Big Terrible Thing.
In the opening he wrote: ‘Hello, my name is Matthew, although you may know me by another name. My friends call me Matty. And I should be dead.”
He added: “People would be surprised to know that I have been mostly sober since 2001. Except for about sixty to seventy minor accidents over the years.’
An old friend of Perry’s – who has been recovering with him – told DailyMail.com last night: ‘Everyone is in a total state of shock. People are crying on the phone and struggling to accept this news.
“It’s no secret he’s struggled with drugs and alcohol for years, but the last time I spoke to him, which was in recent weeks, he seemed to be in a good place.
‘He was cheerful and sounded down-to-earth and positive.
“He had been to rehab seventeen times and almost died from opioid abuse, but he was someone who was sincere about taking his life and his sobriety one day at a time.
‘It’s such tragic news. Everyone prays he doesn’t relapse. Matt was a really nice guy. He was always the first to welcome newcomers to the group and always volunteered to help and serve.
“We are all struggling to come to terms with this terrible news.”
