Gary Rossington had several brushes with death during his time with Lynyrd Skynyrd. In 1976, he was in a serious car crash that set back the band's touring schedule. In their infamous 1977 plane crash, he broke three limbs and punctured two internal organs and later became addicted to painkiller medication. He also had issues with his heart, which has been through a lot, particularly in recent years. In 2003, Rossington had quintuple bypass surgery, after doctors discovered during routine screening that he was suffering from coronary artery disease. Rossington needed more surgeries following a heart attack in 2015.
While Johnny Van Zant seemed to say it wasn't that serious ("He got in and got it taken care of," the singer told CMT), his family wrote in a Facebook post they "were very close to losing him this time and just pray that they will develop even better techniques soon to deal with heart disease."
Then, in August 2017, Lynyrd Skynyrd announced that Rossington "had to undergo a procedure to address some blockage in his arteries to his heart," causing the band to cancel some dates on that year's tour. With their leader's health a concern, Lynyrd Skynyrd announced a "Farewell Tour" in 2018. "I've had heart attacks on stage a lot," Rossington told the Tampa Bay Times. "I don't want to just say, 'Well, we're never going to end' because I don't want to die and then it end that way. Which is a heavy thing to talk about, but I have to."
Through all his injuries, illnesses, and tragedies, Rossington kept up his guitar playing. By the 21st century, he was the last of the founding members to still play with Lynyrd Skynyrd. His declining health took away his stamina for touring but not his musicianship. He was still with the band when he died on March 5, 2023.
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