The head of Bloomsbury US, the American arm of the publishing company behind the “Harry Potter” series, was reportedly killed in a horrific speedboat accident Thursday while vacationing with her family in Italy, officials say.
Adrienne Vaughan, 45, was reportedly on a rented motorboat with her husband and two children when it collided with a sail ship called the Tortuga. The Tortuga was carrying a group of American and German tourists celebrating a wedding off of Italy’s Amalfi Coast, according to the Evening Standard. The impact of the collision forced Vaughan into the water, where she was reportedly struck repeatedly by the boat’s propeller.
A tourist who was CEO of the American arm of the British publisher that launched Harry Potter in the UK was killed in a boating accident off Italy’s Amalfi Coast https://t.co/c7iicfNgAE
— CNN (@CNN) August 4, 2023
Though first responders transported Vaughan to a local medical facility for treatment, she succumbed to her injuries before she could be airlifted to a hospital in Salerno, according to CNN. (RELATED: REPORT: Baby Tethered To Boat Drowns In Fiji While Parents Cook Dinner)
Marinella Guglielmotti, a public prosecutor in Salerno, reportedly said an investigation has been opened into the skipper of the boat Vaughan’s family was on. Toxicology reports showed the skipper’s blood alcohol level was above the legal limit, CNN reported. The captain of the Tortuga is not under investigation, since the captain did not test positive for any substances, the outlet stated.
Both boats have been sequestered by Italian authorities, and they continue their investigation into the collision, the outlet stated.