Rory Callum Sykes, a British-born former child actor, perished in the wildfires that ravaged California this week.
Sykes, who appeared in the Australian television series Kiddy Kapers, died at the age of 32 at his family’s Malibu home.
His mother, Shelley Sykes, who also starred in the 1998 reality series, made the announcement on X/Twitter.
“It is with great sadness that I have to announce the death of my beautiful son @Rorysykes to the Malibu fires yesterday,” Shelley posted on Instagram.
Sykes was most recently known as a video game streamer who lived in Sydney, Australia before moving to the United States.
He was born blind and with cerebral palsy; as a child, he and his mother appeared on the Australian talk show Kerri-Anne and discussed the surgeries he had undergone to restore his sight.
His mother stated that he was living in a cottage on his family’s sprawling Malibu estate when the fires broke out.
“I couldn’t put out the cinders on his roof with a hose because the water was switched off by Las Virgenes Municipal Water,” she recalled. “Even the 50 brave firefighters had no water all day.”
Shelley described her son as a “true humanitarian” and said she was “heartbroken” over his death.
“Rory was born blind with cerebral palsy & had difficulty walking,” she tweeted. “He went through so many surgeries and therapies to regain his sight and learn to walk. Despite his pain, he was still excited about traveling the world with me, from Africa to Antarctica.”
The fires in Los Angeles began on Tuesday (7 January) and have killed at least 11 people, with the confirmed death toll expected to rise in the coming days. Sykes’ death has not yet been included in official figures.
The Pacific Palisades and Eaton fires were the most destructive in California’s history.
Jennifer Garner, an actor, is among those who have lost loved ones in the fires.
“I did lose a friend, and for our church, it’s really tender, so I don’t feel like we should talk about her yet,” the visibly emotional actor said while distributing food to evacuees with the nonprofit World Central Kitchen. “I did lose a friend who did not get out in time.”
“My heart bleeds for my friends,” she added. “I mean, I can think of 100 families, and there are 5,000 homes destroyed. I could write down a list of 100 friends who have lost their homes without even thinking about it.
