Kipsta Dead at 17 After Heart Transplant, Tributes Flood in For YouTuber

Tributes have poured in for the YouTuber Kipsta after his death following a heart transplant.

The 17-year-old, whose real name was Alex Dragomir, had a lengthy battle with heart failure.

On Friday, his sister told how he underwent a seven-hour operation but sadly did not survive because his heart "couldn't take it anymore."

Sharing the news from her brother's Twitter account, she wrote: "Helllo, as you all might already know my brother passed away today he had a very hard operation which lasted 7 hours but his heart couldn't take it anymore, he was too weak to survive. Heaven gained another angel he was my rock my everything. RIP Alex."

She then went on to thank his 18,000 followers for supporting her brother through his hospital journey, adding that the messages often "kept his head up."

The tragic news came just hours after Dragomir tweeted that he was going in for the life-saving procedure. He then thanked his fans, writing: "If it don't work then its been a great time people thank you for all you've done for me."

Dragomir's "Kipsta" channel would regularly see the social media star post videos from his hospital bed. He would also share his passion for soccer with his viewers via livestreams.

The account currently has over 16,000 subscribers but the figure is growing rapidly as fans share the news online.

Following news of Dragomir's death fans hailed the star on Twitter and even made "RIP Alex" trend.

User @Thogden wrote: "RIP Alex. One of the nicest guys on here. Such a kind soul & would speak to anyone who wanted a chat. God will take care of you."

"You were the bravest the person I've ever met," @JustTooBreezy wrote. "Even though you were going through you so much you were so caring and loving. You had so much love for life and your family.... I'm so sorry. Heaven gained an absolutely beautiful person today. RIP Alex."

Replying to the tweet from Alex's sister, @Hunain1878 wrote: "RIP your brother was a true fighter and an inspirational to us all such a genuine and beautiful soul taken too early. peace and blessings to your family in this hard time."

@bestcanton7 praised the star for showing the "best of twitter, the best of us and the best of humanity."

Fans of English soccer team Manchester United, Alex's favorites, also flooded social media with messages of support.

A fundraising page was set up ahead of Alex's transplant in a bid to help the family after his mother quit her job in order to support him full-time.

The GoFundMe campaign has taken off following the news and had raised over $15,000 at the time of writing.