Sublime Bassist Eric Wilson Seriously Injured in ATV Accident

Sublime bassist Eric Wilson was seriously injured in an ATV accident on his Bonsall, California ranch on Thursday.

Wilson, 49, suffered a broken arm and four broken ribs, his manager Cheez told TMZ Saturday. The musician was working on his 20-acre avocado ranch when the ATV rolled over and crushed him. He was then rushed to a hospital near San Diego.

According to TMZ, Wilson’s injuries required surgery and was in an operating room for almost five hours. He is still in the hospital as of Saturday, but is expected to be released early next week.

Wilson’s current group, Sublime With Rome, shared a photo of Wilson in his hospital bed on Saturday. “Eric says thanks for the well wishes! He’s doing much better. F– avocados, man. They’ll get you every time,” the caption read.

Fans offered get-well-soon messages in the comments section.

“Omg!!! Feel better soon Eric. Sending you lots of love, light and healing vibrations,” one fan wrote.

“Get well Eric keep on slapping that bass bruhhh,” another wrote.

“Better be some damn good avocados! Hope you heal quick,” another fan added.

Wilson was the founding bassist for Sublime, along with guitarist Bradley Nowell and drummer Bud Gaugh. After Nowell died of a heroin overdose in 1996, the trio broke up in 1997.

The group released three albums, with the most successful being their 1996 self-titled album. The album’s hit singles include “What I Got,” “Santeria,” “Wrong Way” and “Doin’ Time.”

After the break-up, Wilson continued to perform and took part in a 2009 reunion with Gaugh and new guitarist Rome Ramirez. The trio was forced to perform and record as Sublime With Rome following a lawsuit. Although Faugh left in 2011, Ramirez and Wilson continue to perform and record.

In December, Ramirez told fans they are working on a new album called Blessings, which will be released in June 2019. He also announced a tour that will start in June.

“We’ve been working on this album about a year and a half, so we finally got a pack of songs we’re really stoked on,” Ramirez said in a July interview with the Sand Point Reader. “We went to Texas at this studio we play out there. It was beautiful, it’s in the middle of nowhere and there’s a hundred thousand palm trees – crazy. But they had all this crazy vintage gear from all these legends and stuff. We went out there and recorded all the songs we’d previously written. It was rad.”

Ramirez continued, “We did the whole thing with Rob Cavallo, who’s this master producer, and it was a great time working with somebody of his stature, so it was really cool, a different direction for us.”

Photo credit: Christopher Polk/Getty Images for Anheuser-Busch