Food Network chef Michael Chiarello had an allergic reaction that caused him to develop hives all over his body on the day he died, RadarOnline.com has learned.
The culinary expert got home from work very late and went to bed around 7 a.m., according to his partner, Kellie Martin, who described him as being “restless” in the early hours of October 7 in a police report.
“Kellie was concerned because, to her knowledge, the decedent had not eaten anything in quite some time,” the report stated.
Martin said they dined at one of his restaurants, Bottega, the night before but only she ate. She was unsure if he snacked on anything between that time and when he got back home. At 8 a.m., he got in the shower after noticing the skin rash.
Chiarello had told his partner that his hands were itchy, and “she could see his face was swelling up” so she gave him two Benadryl tablets, which he swallowed but was unable to get down a third. She rushed him to the Queen of the Valley Medical Center in Napa.
“While on the way to QVH the decedent stopped breathing,” according to the report, which stated that she pulled over to a parking lot, called 911 and started CPR before Napa City Fire and AMR responded to the scene and transported him to QVH.
Chiarello later died at Queen of the Valley Medical Center in Napa due to an allergic reaction that resulted in anaphylactic shock that spiraled into a heart attack.
“The doctors don’t know what caused the allergic reaction and neither does the family,” a representative for his company Gruppo Chiarello told PEOPLE. “They may never know.”
RadarOnline.com previously learned that both his current partner and estranged wife, Eileen Gordon, said that he allegedly started using an Ozempic-type drug prior to his sudden death.
The coroner in Napa County noted that cocaine use was another “significant condition” in the final findings on Chiarello’s death. While the stimulant drug was in his system, they were clear that his death was not the result of an overdose.
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Chiarello was a beloved chef known for his Food Network Emmy-winning series, Easy Entertaining With Michael Chiarello, which launched in 2003.
He also made appearances on Bravo’s Top Chef and Top Chef Masters and authored several cookbooks.
“As we navigate this profound loss, we hold dear the moments we cherished with him, both in his kitchens and in our hearts,” his family shared in a statement. “His legacy will forever live on in the love he poured into every dish and the passion he instilled in all of us to savor life’s flavors.”
