“I got back from the flight and it was chaos, just felt like death.”
Quamina explained he had “shortness of breath”, was coughing and received medical care including antibiotics and a steroid shot to open his lungs.
Bodybuilder Dwayne Quamina has died aged 40. Photo / @kingq_ifbbpro
“We’re on our way to recovery, baby,” he said.
“We’re feeling better, it’s been a rough two days. We made it through it and yeah, we’ll start building again.”
The Trinidad Express was the first to report his death.
His wife Leah Jerez shared details of a “celebration of life” service in California to commemorate him.
The bodybuilder offered online coaching and regularly shared motivational tips to his hundreds of thousands of followers.
“Stop taking life for granted go all the way and have zero regrets when it’s all over!!” he wrote in a post weeks before his death.
“Who do you want to become? Once you figure that out all that’s left is to go out and become,” he captioned another video.
Tributes have poured in from the bodybuilding community, including eight-time Ms Olympia winner Lenda Murray who said her “thoughts and prayers are for the family”.
“It’s absolutely tragic. We competed together just a week ago at the Atlanta Pro,” muscle man Karol Malecki Ale Lekkie said.
“It’s hard to believe he’s gone.”
A GoFundMe page has been set up to help pay for his family’s rent, bills and daily life and described Quamina as a devoted father, loving husband and loyal friend.
“Dwayne was a loving yet fierce man, someone who protected and provided for his family while uplifting others with his presence, kindness, and unwavering spirit,” the page described him.
“His loss has left an unimaginable void in the hearts of all who knew and loved him.”
The 40-year-old won the lightweight title at the 2016 NPC USA Championships and 2017 Europa Phoenix Pro event, while also finishing 10th at the 2018 Mr Olympia tournament.