General Hospital actress Sonya Eddy died after developing an infection after a procedure in mid-December.
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The beloved 55-year-old actress, who appeared in over 500 episodes of General Hospital over 15 years, and can be seen in character as head nurse Epiphany Johnson in the clip below, died on 19 December and now her friend Tyler Ford has explained how the soap star fell ill and returned to the hospital on 15 December after having been sent home four days earlier.
Doctors then discovered she had developed the infection but she was sadly placed on life support before she passed away on Monday evening, Tyler told TMZ.
Sonya starred as Epiphany Johnson, a stubborn head nurse who was the mother of the late Stan Johnson. She had also worked on projects like Seinfeld, Reba, Joan of Arcadia, CSI and Glee.
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"My friend @sonyaeddy passed away last night. The world lost another creative angel. Her legions of @generalhospitalabc fans will miss her," award-winning actress Octavia Spencer captioned a post honoring her dear friend.
"My thoughts and prayers are with her loved ones, friends, and fans!"
Sonya (left) appeared in the show for over 500 episodes
General Hospital executive producer Frank Valentini said in a statement posted to the ABC soap’s verified Instagram account that he was “heartbroken about the loss," confirming her passing.
"I truly loved her, not only as an actress, but as a friend," the post read. "The lights in the hub of the nurse’s station will now be a little dimmer, but her spirit and light will live on in both the show and our set."
ABC added in a statement: "General Hospital is sad to confirm the passing of actress Sonya Eddy, who embodied her character, the tough but compassionate head nurse, Epiphany Johnson, and immediately became a fan favorite and beloved member of our GH family when she joined the show in 2006."
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