‘The Wire’ Star Reveals His Son Is in the ICU After Tornado Destroys Home

The Wire star Tray Chaney is asking for prayers after suffering a double blow. He lost his home in Atlanta due to Tornado damage recently, and his son is now in ICU due to injuries from the storm.

Chaney starred as Malik “Poot” Carr, a drug dealer working for Avon Barksdale (Wood Harris), for five seasons on the hit HBO crime drama. His son, 18-year-old Malachi, appeared on an Atlanta radio program with his co-star, Felicia Pearson, who played Snoop, the day before the turn of events.

In a video posted to his Instagram account, Chaney stood in front of the remains of his home, detailing what happened. “I just got out the hospital. I’m getting ready to go see my son in the ICU. At 3 p.m. today, a tornado came through Henry County, Locust Grove, Atlanta. I lost my house. I lost everything in it. Thank God I’m still living. I survived a tornado. My son, he survived,” he said, becoming emotional. “I’m doing the video to let y’all know to cherish life. Cherish life as much as you can.”

In a second statement, Chaney spoke more about the impact, Malachi was thrown hundreds of feet in the storm and knocked unconscious. “I was unconscious on the ground with my face in the mud with parts of my house on top of me,” Chaney wrote in the post. “I woke up in a panic, crawled from under my house screaming my son’s name out. My neighbors were there to assist me and finally we found my son 300 feet away in the woods behind my house. Malachai is in the hospital fighting and me and my wife have not and will not leave his side.”

A GoFundMe page for Chaney and his family has already raised more than $12,000 to help with rebuilding costs. Chaney continues to update fans on his son’s condition, saying though there have been improvements, he’s up for “a long journey to recovery ahead.”

Since his work on The Wire, Chaney has made multiple appearances in shorts and other television shows. He starred in Saints & Sinners for six seasons.