Fox TV presenter Jessica Starr has died today at the age of 35 after taking her own life, her colleagues said.
News of Jessica’s tragic death was confirmed on Thursday by Fox 2 Detroit, the news station she worked for.
The talented presenter leaves behind her husband and two children.
Her colleague Amy Andrews, who works as an anchor for Fox 2, paid tribute on Twitter.
“Our hearts are broken,” she wrote. “Last night we were informed our Jessica Starr took her life.
“Her Fox 2 family is deep shock and cannot believe such a wonderful, bright and intelligent woman is gone. Keep her family in your prayers in the coming days as we all deal with our grief.”
The station also tweeted a statement about Jessica’s death.
"Last night we were informed of the heartbreaking news that our friend and colleague, meteorologist Jessica Starr took her life," it wrote.
"All of us here are in shock and cannot believe such a wonderful, bright and intelligent individual will no longer be with us."
Another anchor, Roop Raj, paid tribute online, saying: "It is with a heavy heart that I post this.
"Our dear friend and colleague Jessica Starr has died. She leaves behind a husband, two beautiful children and a loving family. I send my deepest sympathies to her family. Our hometown girl will always be remembered fondly."
Jessica had previously opened up about receiving abuse after returning to TV ahead of the birth of her child.
In 2015 the heavily pregnant told the station she’d received a nasty letter about her weight, three weeks before her due date.
"We’re in the public eye, and you have to have a thick skin to be in the media. That’s just part of it, and I’m okay with that. You can not like the hair today; we’re used to that. You can not like the makeup, the outfit, that’s fine. Doesn’t bother me," she’d said on air.
"But, I got a hand-written letter saying that it looks like I’m about to deliver an elephant, and, ‘Isn’t it about time you start your [maternity] leave?’ And I just think that’s crossing the line."
Jessica added during an all-women panel that it was harder to be pregnant as a weather presenter because she worked in front of the green screen.
"We turn to the side, you see it," she said, adding that she was finding it difficult to shake off the letter.
Jessica’s last Instagram post was on October 31 and showed her two little children – a boy and a girl – dressed up for Halloween.
Her older son Noah wore a Superman outfit and clutched a teddy bear in his arm, while her youngest daughter Riley went trick or treating as a unicorn.
Little Noah had just started his first term of kindergarten in September.
Jessica had shared a cryptic quote on June 20 to Instagram, which said: "Life is so ironic, it takes sadness to know what happiness is, noise to appreciate silence and absence to value presence."
In October, Jessica – who completed two meteorology degrees prior to her TV work – underwent an operation on her eyes to correct her vision.
But she had a tough recovery from the Lasik laser vision surgery, suffering from dry eye and having to take a few weeks off work to recover.
Her final tweet was posted on November 14, giving followers an update on her condition.
"Yesterday was a struggle for me. I really wanted to come back but need more time to recover. Please keep me in your thoughts during this challenging time," she said.
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