Current:Home > BackU.S. publishing boss Adrienne Vaughan killed in "terrible" speedboat crash in Italy-LoTradeCoin
U.S. publishing boss Adrienne Vaughan killed in "terrible" speedboat crash in Italy
View Date:2024-12-23 19:41:04
U.S. publishing executive Adrienne Vaughan has died in a horrific boating accident off Italy's Amalfi Coast, her company said Friday.
Vaughan, 45, was president of Bloomsbury Publishing Inc., publisher of the Harry Potter series.
"Adrienne Vaughan was a leader of dazzling talent and infectious passion and had a deep commitment to authors and readers," said the association's board chair, Julia Reidhead, and its president and CEO, Maria A. Pallante, in a joint statement. "Most of all she was an extraordinary human being, and those of us who had the opportunity to work with her will be forever fortunate."
The rented motorboat Vaughan and her family were on during a vacation to the popular tourist destination crashed into a sailboat Thursday, Italian state TV said, knocking her into the water, where according to witnesses she was struck repeatedly by the motorboat's propeller.
A video of the incident published by the New York Post showed guests on the sailboat partying at the moment the speedboat hit, with one woman asking, "What happened?"
"This boat, it collided with us," a man responds frantically, before running across the deck.
Moments later, another man looks over the edge: "Jesus Christ," he says. "She needs help," says another guest.
"The sailboat was going straight ahead and so was the [motor]boat," Pietro Iuzzolino, a barman who at the moment of impact was making cocktails aboard the sailboat, told Italian newspaper Corriere del Mezzogiorno. "Then suddenly [the motorboat] veered 180 degrees: there was a collision and I heard a very loud bang.
"I saw the woman in the water being held up by her children and her husband: she didn't have an arm and the nape of her neck was white, as if blood was not flowing. It was terrible."
Vaughan was pulled out of the water and brought to a dock but died by the time a helicopter ambulance arrived, state TV said.
The Italian coast guard office in Amalfi is investigating the crash. A call to its office wasn't answered, nor was there a response to an emailed request to the Coast Guard for details.
The victim's husband was hospitalized with a shoulder injury while the couple's two young children were uninjured, according to the reports.
No one aboard the sailboat, which had more than 80 U.S. and German tourists and the crew members on board, was injured.
A blood test for the skipper of the motorboat tested positive for substance use, reported Italian news agency ANSA, which didn't indicate whether the result indicated alcohol or drug consumption.
Sailboat barman Iuzzolino said the skipper was "vomiting", adding "we got the impression he was drunk."
The skipper, an Italian about 30 years old, suffered a broken pelvis and ribs, ANSA said.
There was no answer at the courthouse in the southern of port city of Salerno, where prosecutors are overseeing the investigation.
When the motorboat crashed, it had been headed to Positano, one of the most popular destinations along the Amalfi Coast, Italian media said.
- In:
- Boating Accident
- Italy
- Boat Accident
veryGood! (966)
Related
- Kentucky officer reprimanded for firing non-lethal rounds in 2020 protests under investigation again
- ‘Stop Cop City’ activists arrested after chaining themselves to bulldozer near Atlanta
- Wealthy Russian with Kremlin ties gets 9 years in prison for hacking and insider trading scheme
- Deion Sanders, Colorado start fast with rebuild challenging college football establishment
- Kentucky woman seeking abortion files lawsuit over state bans
- 11-year-old boy to stand trial for mother's murder
- Prince Harry Returns to London for WellChild Awards Ahead of Queen Elizabeth II's Death Anniversary
- Catholic-Jewish research substantiates reports that Catholic convents sheltered Jews during WWII
- Bo the police K-9, who located child taken at knifepoint, wins Hero Dog Awards 2024
- Maui beckons tourists, and their dollars, to stave off economic disaster after wildfires
Ranking
- Repair Hair Damage In Just 90 Seconds With This Hack from WNBA Star Kamilla Cardoso
- Hurricane Lee charges through open Atlantic waters as it approaches northeast Caribbean
- I Tried the Haus Labs Concealer Lady Gaga Says She Needs in Her Makeup Routine
- Former crypto executive the latest to face charges in collapse of FTX exchange
- Tech consultant testifies that ‘bad joke’ led to deadly clash with Cash App founder Bob Lee
- High school football coach whose on-field prayer led to SCOTUS ruling quits after 1 game
- Trump may try to have his Georgia election interference case removed to federal court
- Convicted of embezzlement, former Baltimore Mayor Sheila Dixon is running again
Recommendation
-
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign chancellor to step down at end of academic year
-
Priyanka Chopra Jonas Steps Out on Red Carpet Amid Joe Jonas and Sophie Turner Divorce
-
Stock market today: Asian shares fall as China reports weaker global demand hit its trade in August
-
Federal judge deals another serious blow to proposed copper-nickel mine on edge Minnesota wilderness
-
New York eyes reviving congestion pricing toll before Trump takes office
-
New Rules Help to Answer Whether Clean Energy Jobs Will Also Be Good Jobs
-
Convicted of embezzlement, former Baltimore Mayor Sheila Dixon is running again
-
French President Macron: ‘There can’t, obviously, be a Russian flag at the Paris Games’