In a tragic event that has shocked the community of Miami Beach, 15-year-old Ella Riley Adler, a talented ballerina and student, lost her life in a hit-and-run boating accident while water-skiing off the coast of Key Biscayne. The incident occurred around 4:30 PM on Saturday when a boat struck Adler and then sped away from the scene.
Witnesses at the scene described a distressing sight with “a lot of blood in the water,” yet the boat responsible for the collision has not been located, and the driver remains unidentified. The community and Adler’s family are left with grief and unanswered questions about the circumstances of her untimely death.
Ella Riley Adler’s father pays moving tribute to his ballerina daughter, 15, who was killed in hit-and-run boat crash telling funeral mourners: ‘Mommy and I said you got the best of us’ as authorities offer $20,000 reward to find killer https://t.co/1wiV98DKPg . #Trump2024 pic.twitter.com/ovu7GddXy3
— NahBabyNah (@NahBabyNah) May 14, 2024
Michael Winkleman, a maritime attorney, has expressed skepticism about the possibility that the boat’s driver might not have realized they hit someone. Given the physics of the collision, Winkleman argues that the impact of hitting a person, especially at speed, would be distinctly noticeable. “I find that extremely hard to believe because hitting a person is a large object, you would definitely feel that especially if you are going at any type of rate of speed,” Winkleman told NBC Miami.
Ella was a student at Miami’s Ransom Everglades School and was known for her exceptional contributions to the arts and her school community. She was involved in numerous activities including the Jewish Student Association, the debate team, and was a celebrated performer with the Miami City Ballet. According to Billy Zavelson, a spokesperson for the Miami City Ballet, “Ella Adler was not just a beloved student and a magnificent dancer who graced our stage in George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker; she was an integral part of our family.”
#Florida ballerina, 15, killed in a hit-and-run boat crash in a water-skiing accident
Florida teen Ella Riley Adler is remembered as a loving friend, a ‘wonderful dancer’ pic.twitter.com/OHrx930GRE— Jillian Wyatt (@aprahemz) May 13, 2024
The aftermath of the accident saw Adler’s family and friends coming together to mourn at a funeral service held at Temple Beth Sholom in Miami Beach on Monday morning. Rachel Rodriguez, the Head of School at Ransom Everglades, expressed the profound impact of Adler’s death on the school, noting, “Our hearts are broken and our community has been devastated by this tragedy. Ella shined in our classrooms and on our stages.”
As the search for the hit-and-run boater continues, police have canvassed marinas near the scene but have yet to find the vessel described as “white to light blue in color, with a blue or dark blue bottom paint, and possibly having two to four white outboard engines.” The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and local authorities are offering a reward of $25,000 for information leading to the identification of the boater involved in this fatal incident.
FWC officials recently announced that they have seized a “vessel of interest” that was involved in the incident.
