Statement From Afa "The Wild Samoan" Regarding Umaga's Passing

Afa "The Wild Samoan" released this statement about the tragic passing of Edward 'Umaga' Fatu:

On behalf of my family, the Anoa'i and Fatu family, we are devastated and shocked by the loss of our Eki. Our son, nephew, brother, cousin, husband, father. Our hearts are broken, and words can't express what each of us are feeling. It is so comforting to know how loved Eki is by his family, peers, friends, and most of all his fans. When I received that a.m. phone call that my nephew was in the hospital, I dug deep and prayed and cried and begged for a miracle. When we lost Eki, I knew it was God's will, and that he is with my sister, his mother, who passed just a year ago.

We are making our plans now for our farewell to Eki, but I wanted to take this time to thank everyone for all of the thousands of posts, emails, letters, and cards. Although I have not been able to bring myself to answer them personally, your kindness does not go unnoticed. I want to especially thank our WWE family and Stephanie McMahon for everything, and her phone call was very comforting to me in my time of sorrow.

God bless each and every one of you, and I've said it a hundred times, the best people in the world are our wrestling people. You'll never find a more dedicated group of people.

Be safe and be healthy, and love one another.

God bless,

Afa the Wild Samoan
"Pops"