Two-time Survivor castaway Keith Nale has passed away at the age of 62 after a short but fierce cancer battle.

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"He passed away this afternoon," Keith's eldest son, Wes Nale, told Entertainment Tonight on Tuesday, April 18.

"He'd been battling cancer for the past few months and we found out about it in January."

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Wes competed with -- and ultimately against -- Keith on Survivor: San Juan del Sur -- Blood vs. Water in 2014. Keith returned one year later for Survivor Cambodia: Second Chance.

Keith's brother, Kevin Nale, also lamented about how Keith was "a life taken way too soon!"

"It happened so quickly," Kevin shared. "Cancer ate him up. He passed... at his home in Shreveport, Lousiana."

Keith finished the 29th season of the CBS reality series, Survivor: San Juan del Sur -- Blood vs. Water, in fourth place. He lost the $1 million grand prize to Natalie Anderson.

Keith was a 53-year-old fire captain from Louisiana at the time, and he was also defeated by runner-up Jaclyn Schultz and third-place finisher Missy Payne.

Survivor host Jeff Probst discovered at the live reunion show that if Keith had made it to the Final 3 instead of Natalie, he would've won the million with about half the jury votes.

Keith, an underdog from the start, prided himself on playing an honest game during both of his Survivor stints, and he became a fan-favorite player due to his ability to win multiple Immunity Challenges at his age.

But Keith actually didn't know a lot about the game of Survivor when he signed up to play.

"The funny thing about it is I wasn't Wesley's first choice I come to find out, you know? I was like, 'What do you mean I wasn't your first choice!?' His first choice was his little brother, but Survivor said, 'Oh, we already have a brother/brother team,'" Keith told Reality TV World after the season's finale aired on CBS.

"So, insert me. I was his second choice, and I said, 'Sure, let's do this! I've watched a little bit of Survivor. I can do them challenges.' Everybody says they can do them, you know? But that's how I got in the ballgame -- father/son... And it was a hell of an experience! A hell of an experience."

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When Keith returned for Survivor Cambodia: Second Chance in 2015, he finished the season in fifth place.

Keith got voted out after he declined to use a fake hidden Immunity Idol Kelley Wentworth had made him to try to fool Jeremy Collins, Spencer Bledsoe and Tasha Fox into turning on one another. He and his loyal ally, Kelley, both fell short of making the Final 3.

Jeremy ended up winning the game and the $1 million through a unanimous vote.

Kelley is mourning Keith's death, as she took to Twitter on Tuesday with a tribute to her former Survivor ally.

"Keith -- a man with the purest heart, who brought humor into moments where it was needed most," Kelley tweeted.

"I'm grateful I had the opportunity to meet Keith & share memories together on the beaches of Nicaragua & Cambodia. My heart is with the entire Nale family. This is a devastating loss."

Jeremy also offered his condolences to the "entire Nale family" in a Twitter post, adding, "You will be missed Keith but your legacy will live on.  Rest in power my firefighter/survivor brother. #RIPOtis."

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After his second time competing on Survivor, Keith told Reality TV World that, given his age, he was "pretty much done" playing the game.


About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski

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