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All day Monday, hundreds of fans of Paul Walker, who was killed in a fiery car crash in Valencia on Saturday, flocked to the crash site to leave flowers, candles and mementos to say goodbye to the actor.
On Monday evening, the fans were cleared out so that family members and some members of the cast of the Fast & Furious films could have a private moment to say their own farewell. The L.A. County Sheriffs’ office confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter that a permit had been requested to hold a private memorial that night. The surrounding streets were shut down from 7 p.m. until 10 p.m. A deputy at the scene told The Santa Clarita Valley Signal that Universal had obtained the permit. (Universal declined to comment.)
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Just after 10 p.m., video surfaced of star Vin Diesel at the private memorial, where he took a moment to speak to the fans using a sheriff’s car microphone.
“I just wanted to say thank you for coming down here and showing that angel up in heaven how much you appreciate him,” he said, also calling Walker his “brother.”
Another star of the racing action franchise had already made his way to the site of the tragic accident. On Sunday, Tyrese Gibson arrived, carrying a yellow lily and quietly crying at the site. Some people gathered around the actor snapped pictures of him, but Gibson didn’t utter a word during his brief visit.
As THR previously reported, Walker and the rest of the cast were on Thanksgiving break from shooting the seventh installment in the film franchise.
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Walker, 40, died when the limited-edition Porsche in which he was a passenger crashed at around 3:30 p.m. on Saturday. The driver has been identified as Roger Rodas, a well-respected financial adviser and the CEO of Walker’s company, Always Evolving. The duo met because of their shared passion for cars.
Walker was in the area, just north of Los Angeles, for a car show and toy drive set up through his charity, Reach Out WorldWide.
The restart of production on the seventh Fast film is currently delayed as Universal execs, producers and director James Wan figure out what to do with the story in light of the loss of Walker.
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