One day after the family of Anne Burrell announced the Iron Chef and Worst Cooks in America star had passed away unexpectedly, new details have arisen about how the chef spent her final days.
According to a police report obtained by People, first responders arrived at Burrell’s Brooklyn home just before 8 a.m. Tuesday morning, shortly after someone in the house made a 911 call reporting a cardiac arrest.
A police report made that morning at the 55-year-old’s home also said the chef was found “unconscious and unresponsive” by officers.
However, the New York Medical Examiner’s office has not yet confirmed Burrell’s cause of death. Neither has her family, who initially confirmed her passing to People last night.
Just hours before her death, on Monday night, Burrell celebrated her onstage debut at The Second City New York in Brooklyn, where she’d recently completed a course of improv comedy classes.
A source who attended the performance told People that the Worst Cooks in America judge was “in great spirits [Monday] night during and after the improv show.”
“Typical fun, outgoing Anne, having a blast,” the source added.
Burrell posted about her Second City classes on Instagram just one week before her death, inviting followers to attend her June 16 performance. In the post, she called her class a “small but super fun group” and an “ABSOLUTE blast!!!”
Second City paid tribute to Burrell in an Instagram post on Wednesday, writing, “Anne brought joy, boldness, and an unwavering ‘yes, and’ spirit. Her enthusiasm was contagious, her presence unforgettable.”
Beyond her improv comedy classes, Burrell appeared to spend her final weeks enjoying time with family, including her husband, Stuart Claxton, and friends, including fellow Food Network stars.
Six days before her death, Burrell supported Top Chef alum Elizabeth Falkner during her One Night Only event at the Soho House restaurant in Manhattan. Sharing snaps of the night on Instagram, Burrell thanked the fellow chef for a “delicious and delightful evening.”
Falkner, who competed against Burrell on The Next Iron Chef in 2011, was one of several celebrity chefs who paid tribute to Burrell on Instagram yesterday.
Alongside another snap of the pair at last week’s dinner, Falkner wrote, “It was so good to see her last week and I feel blessed that she came to my dinner and she thanked me profusely for inviting her. We made a vow to be even better friends. You will seriously be missed Chef.”
MasterChef judge Aarón Sanchez also paid tribute to Burrell, whom he called a “dear friend.”
“Her spirit, her fire, her talent, her leadership, her laugh…unforgettable,” wrote Sanchez on Instagram Tuesday. “So much respect and love for this amazing woman. I’ll carry her memory with me always.”
