A coroner has ruled <a href="https://vt.co/news/entertainment-news/anne-heche-has-legally-died-body-to-be-kept-on-life-support-for-possible-organ-donation" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Anne Heche's official cause of death</a>. The 53-year-old actor was declared legally dead last Friday (August 12), after a catastrophic car crash left her with a severe brain injury. Now, the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner has officially ruled that the star died due to inhalation of smoke and thermal injuries. Her manner of death was listed as an accident, per a report by <a href="https://people.com/tv/anne-heche-death-ruled-an-accident-died-from-smoke-inhalation-thermal-injuries/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">People</a>. <img class="wp-image-1263165176 size-full" src="https://img.vt.co/2022/08/HecheFI1-1.jpg" alt="" width="1535" height="800" />[[imagecaption|| Credit: WENN Rights Ltd / Alamy]] The coroner's report also noted that Heche had suffered a "sternal fracture due to blunt trauma" in the severe car accident on August 5. According to the <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK507790/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">National Library of Medicine</a>, sternal fractures are typically caused by the driver's chest slamming into the steering wheel upon collision. Earlier this month, the Psycho star fell into a coma after crashing her car into a house in the neighborhood of Mar Vista in LA. The collision resulted in a "heavy fire" erupting, per the Los Angeles Fire Department. The blaze took 59 firefighters over an hour to extinguish. <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/anne-heche-hospitalized-car-crash-los-angeles-home-fire/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CBS News</a> reported how emergency services had to pull Heche out of the wreck before transporting her to the hospital. Her family later announced that - alongside horrific burns - the the crash had left her with "a severe anoxic brain injury" which starved her brain of oxygen. <img class="wp-image-1263165049 size-full" src="https://img.vt.co/2022/08/BKB2TG-scaled.jpg" alt="" width="2560" height="1767" />[[imagecaption|| Heche in the 1998 Psycho remake. Credit: Moviestore Collection Ltd / Alamy]] After almost a week on life support, it was announced on August 12 that she had legally passed away. Her body remained on life support for several more days until August 15, so that her final wish to be an organ donor could be fulfilled. In a statement at the time, a rep for the Donnie Brasco star told People: "Today we lost a bright light, a kind and most joyful soul, a loving mother, and a loyal friend. Anne will be deeply missed but she lives on through her beautiful sons, her iconic body of work, and her passionate advocacy." "Her bravery for always standing in her truth, spreading her message of love and acceptance, will continue to have a lasting impact," the statement added. <img class="wp-image-1263164909 size-full" src="https://img.vt.co/2022/08/2HXJH4E-scaled-e1660234586953.jpg" alt="" width="1707" height="2073" />[[imagecaption|| Credit: Sipa US / Alamy]] Heche leaves behind two sons - Homer, 20, and Atlas, 13. She shared Homer with her ex-husband Coleman Laffoon and Atlas with her partner James Tupper. <h6>Featured Image Credit: REUTERS / Alamy</h6>

Anne Heche's cause of death revealed by coroner

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