Sophia Bush’s world was ‘shattered’ a decade ago when her Google executive ex and ‘best friend’ died in an Everest avalanche aged just 33.

Dan Fredinburg – who Bush, 42, dated for a year from 2013-2014 – was killed in the Mount Everest-South Base Camp disaster, when a mᴀssive 7.8 Nepal earthquake caused a snow and ice tsunami to engulf base camp on April 25, 2015.

Climate activist Fredinburg – described by friends as ‘magical, brainy and adventurous’ – was three weeks into his latest Everest summit expedition, which saw him mapping out the mountain’s ascent routes and fundraising for two Nepali orphanages – when disaster struck.

In a haunting coincidence, just one year earlier Fredinburg had survived another avalanche on Everest which killed 16 Nepalese guides – and it was Bush who had confirmed he was safe at the time.

The heartbroken One Tree Hill star took to Instagram to pay tribute to Fredinburg after his death was announced – and called him ‘one of the loves of her life’. 

His death came 14 months after the pair went their separate ways.

Sophia Bush’s world was ‘shattered’ in 2015 when her Google executive ex and ‘best friend’ Dan Fredinburg was killed in a Mount Everest avalanche aged just 33 – pictured July 2013 

Fredinburg – who Bush, 42, dated for a year from 2013-2014 – was killed when a mᴀssive 7.8 Nepal earthquake triggered a tsunami of snow to engulf Everest base camp on April 25 2015 

Climbers and Sherpas were buried under rock and ice at the mountain’s 18,000-foot-high base camp – rescuers are pictured digging for survivors on April 25, 2015

After years of high-profile relationships with Hollywood stars and off the back of a on-off romance with co-star Austin Nichols, a smitten Bush confirmed she was dating the dashing exec in early 2013.

The happy couple made their red carpet debut in July of that year and their relationship went from strength to strength.

Posting a pH๏τo with Fredinburg at the time, Bush wrote: ‘I usually shy away from personal stuff. But I’m feeling real emotional tonight… Hosting the @DoSomething Awards was a milestone for me. 

‘And I wouldn’t have been the same without this man by my side. Thank you, Dan, for loving my pᴀssion and my fight. Thank you for being the spark to my match.’

Fredinburg also tweeted how ‘grateful’ he was to ‘be on the arm of the benevolent, world changing Sophia Bush’ 

The pair later happily posed up at a wedding and even ignited rumors they were set to walk down the aisle themselves.

Although their romance ended in 2014, the pair maintained a close and supportive friendship. 

A source told People in August 2014 of the split: ‘When you see one another for 24 hours every four weeks, it’s impossible to maintain a romantic relationship.

After years of high-profile romances with Hollywood stars and off the back of a years-long on-off romance with co-star Austin Nichols, a smitten Bush confirmed her romance with the dashing exec in 2013 – pictured July 2013

The happy couple made their red carpet debut in July of that year and their relationship went from strength to strength – but ended in February 2014 – pictured July 2013

Fredinburg was three weeks into his latest Everest expedition, which saw him mapping out the mountain’s ascent routes – when disaster struck – pictured on Everest days before his death

Fredinburg had been enthusiastically documenting his latest trip to Everest with his final post just a day before his death showing him drinking cappuccino on the mountain

‘They weren’t able to spend the time together that was necessary to nurture that kind of relationship.’

At the time Bush was filming in Chicago and Fredinburg was based in Northern California. 

Read More Everest’s ‘ᴅᴇᴀᴅliest day ever’: Up to 18 climbers and sherpas feared ᴅᴇᴀᴅ, including Google executive, in avalanches caused by huge earthquake that killed at least 2,400 people across Himalayas 

Bush moved on with Chicago PD star Jesse Lee Soffer while Fredinburg sparked up a romance with Ashley Arenson, who he was with until his death.

Born in Mission Viejo, California, Fredinburg grew up on a farm in Norfolk, Arkansas.

He graduated from the Arkansas School of Math, Science and Art in H๏τ Springs in 1999.

Fredinburg also attended the University of California, Irvine, Columbia University, Stanford University and the University of Southern California.

He started at Google in 2007 as product manager and then became head of privacy at Google X, the company’s secretive arm best known for ‘moonsH๏τ’ projects such as the self-driving car. 

Fredinburg – who described himself as an ‘inventor, Adventurer, and Energetic Engineer’ on his Google+ page, had been travelling to the Himalayas frequently as part of the Google Adventures team, who were mapping out extreme routes around the world.

In a 2013 interview for Time magazine, Fredinburg explained the company’s goal as ‘Different adventurers and people who want to explore from the comfort of their homes have the opportunity to explore and see these different corners of the world.’

His goal was to summit Everest to obtain clear images for Google Earth visitors. 

Fredinburg had been enthusiastically documenting his latest trip to Everest, with his final post just a day before his death showing him drinking cappuccino on the mountain and chillingly predicting ‘danger’. 

The heartbroken One Tree Hill star took to Instagram to pay tribute to Fredinburg after his death was confirmed – and called him ‘one of the loves of her life’ – pictured May 2013

Fredinburg was described by friends as ‘magical, brainy and adventurous’

Bush is pictured with Fredinburg in 2013 

He had also campaigned for his climate change group, SaveTheIce.org, by unrolling a banner on top of neighboring peak, Kala Patthar.

Hours later, Fredinburg was one of four Americans killed when the devastating earthquake struck Nepal.

The earthquake triggered several avalanches on and around the mountain with 19 mountaineers killed and at least 61 injured.

Fredinburg’s sister confirmed he died from a ‘major head injury’ in a heartbreaking post.

She wrote: ‘We appreciate all of the love that has been sent our way thus far and know his soul and his spirit will live on in so many of us. All our love and thanks to those who shared this life with our favorite hilarious strong willed man. He was and is everything to us.’

A devastated Bush paid tribute to Fredinburg hours after his death, writing: ‘There are no adequate words. Today I find myself attempting to pick up the pieces of my heart that have broken into such tiny shards, I’ll likely never find them all. Today I, and so many of my loved ones, lost an incredible friend. Dan Fredinburg was one-of-a-kind. Fearless. Funny. 

‘A dancing robot who liked to ride dinosaurs and chase the sun and envision a better future for the world. His brain knew how to build it. His heart was constantly evolving to push himself to make it so. He was one of my favorite human beings on Earth. He was one of the great loves of my life. 

‘He was one of my truest friends. He was an incredible brother, a brilliant engineer, and a damn good man. I’m devastated and simultaneously so deeply grateful to have known and loved him, and to have counted him as one of my tribe. I was so looking forward to our planned download of “all the things” when he got home. 

‘I am crushed that I will never hear that story. I am crushed knowing that there are over 1,000 people in Nepal suffering this exact feeling, knowing that they too will never hear another tale about an adventure lived from someone that they love. 

Fredinburg’s memory lives on a decade after his death with his loved ones inspiring others to follow his mantra to ‘live life as an adventure’ – pictured the day before his death

His body was carried down the mountain by five Sherpas days after the disaster and taken to a helicopter evacuating stranded climbers – an injured person is pictured being carried off the mountain on April 26 2015

‘Disasters like this are often unquantifiable, the enormity is too much to understand. Please remember that each person who is now gone was someone’s Dan. 

‘Please remember that our time on this Earth is not guaranteed. Please tell those you love that you do. Right now. This very minute. And please send a kiss to the sky for my friend Dan. His energy is so big and so bright, and it’s all around us, so put some love toward him today. And then hug your loved ones again.’

Elia Saikaly, a documentary maker from Ottawa, Canada, was at Everest base camp when the avalanche hit.

He described the dramatic moment he began looking for survivors and realized Dan was ᴅᴇᴀᴅ.

Speaking to CBC, he said: ‘I saw two of them, and I went up to them and I hugged them and I asked them if they were OK and they said yes. And I turned around and I said, “Where’s Dan?” And there was this silence and there was this pale look. All they said was, “He didn’t make it,” and it was as if all time just stood still.’

‘And I was in a complete daze and I was in shock, and I just couldn’t believe it. They had to be kidding. He was gone, just like that… It’s a nightmare that you just want to wake up from.’

His body was carried down the mountain by five Sherpas days after the disaster and taken to a helicopter evacuating stranded climbers.

Mountaineer Daniel Wallace recalled being transported off the mountain with Fredinburg’s body, telling The Standard: ‘Very quickly people worked out who he was. Quite an interesting maverick, I think. Young guy, big on the party scene, and really quite an influential person. It was just him and I on the helicopter.’

Describing the moment disaster struck, Wallace said: ‘We heard this enormous avalanche. The ground started shaking. We thought: this shouldn’t happen, you shouldn’t have the ground shaking when there’s an avalanche. We’d all experienced them before but nothing like this.

‘All we could hear was this mᴀssive noise. It was way behind us, towards base camp. And we got dusted by this small [avalanche]. I was thinking: this the worst place to be in an earthquake. You’re sitting on a glacier that’s covered in crevᴀsses and either you’re going to get blown into [one] or one is going to open up beneath you. 

‘After the avalanche we called down to base camp, to Henry Todd [the organizer] to tell him what had happened… base camp had been completely flattened, and he’d only just escaped with his life. Three of our Sherpas had died.’

In an August 2015 interview with Health Magazine, Bush said Fredinburg’s death had forever changed who she was and taught her to live life to the fullest.

She said: ‘Losing one of my best friends a few months ago shattered me

‘There were days I felt like my body had been turned inside out. I felt like my heart was on the outside of my body and everyone who came near me was stabbing me,’ she said.

‘And the crazy thing is that since Dan died, the lessons have come like Mack trucks.

‘There is no next time. There is no excuse to wait a day to do what you want to do and to change the way that you want to change.’

One month later in September 2015 Bush marked what would have been Fredinburg’s 34th birthday and reflected on their first meeting at Burning Man.

‘I still don’t know what the words are. Magic. Friendship. Memories. Consciousness. Dimensions. Infinite. Break. Dance. Live. Believe. Do.

‘So many. None are the one. They’re puzzle pieces but not the whole picture. What I do know is that you are missed. That you are still here. That you changed us, inspired us, pushed us, and guided us. What I do know is that I saw you this weekend, deep in the desert, many times.

‘I saw a man in spandex & a Viking hat, near the ashes of the wooden man that burned on the playa the night before. I turned to the Minion gals, pointing, & said “hey Viking I see you!” & pulled up to the man to take a pH๏τo of the back of his hat, under the giant bird-shaped cloud that had followed us around all day. His friend noticed me & said, “he’ll kiss you if you ask him,” and I laughed and thanked him, but pᴀssed, explaining that I just wanted to take a pH๏τo of his hat. 

After his split from Bush, Fredinburg sparked up a romance with Ashley Arenson, who he was with until his death

‘The friend said, “Hey Dan, this girl wants to take a pic of your hat!” “Of course your name is Dan,” I said, & he turned toward me on his bike, which of course had a Minion toy strapped to the front of it. The girls and I all laughed aloud, got misty eyed, & turned to go, knowing you’d been saying hello.

‘It happened all weekend. We told stories. We screamed your name to the sky & scribbled it all over the temple & left your pH๏τos & prayer flags & glitter everywhere. We screamed “I love you!!” as it burned & a chorus of “I love yous” began echoing among the tens of thousands of people watching, bouncing all over the playa as it had when I once stood watching that structure burn with you & someone else screamed the same thing for someone who had most likely meant to them what you mean to us.

‘So today, on your birthday, our first #LiveDanDay, I’ll say it again. I love you my friend. I’m grateful for every memory. I’m grateful that we had a friendship that defied context, & a connection that defies physical boundaries even now. Your squad reps you hard, dear one. We live bigger because of you. We will keep writing your name in the sand & dancing in the dust to honor it.

‘To all of you out there who need a little inspiring, take it from Dan. Live big.’

Bush went on to marry second husband Grant Hughes in 2022 but the pair split the following year. She was previously wed to her One Tree Hill co-star Chad Michael Murray from 2005-2006.

Last year Bush announced she was queer and in love with former soccer player Ashlyn Harris.

On the 10 year anniversary of the disaster, Fredinburg’s memory lives on stronger than ever, with his loved ones inspiring others to follow his mantra to ‘live life as an adventure.’

Last year Bush announced she was queer and in love with former soccer player Ashlyn Harris – pictured February 2025

A fundraiser in his memory raised $100,000 for relief in Nepal. 

The Dan Fredinburg Foundation was created to ‘raise funds indefinitely to power social movements around invention, adventure, and action.’

The Dan Fredinburg Innovation Lab also opened at his former school, the Arkansas School for Mathematics, Sciences, and the Arts.