KEY BISCAYNE, Fla. — Investigators from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) are looking for the boater they say struck a 15-year-old girl over the weekend in Miami, killing her.
FWC identified the victim as Ella Adler, a teen from Miami Beach. They said she was waterskiing near the Nixon Beach Sandbar on Key Biscayne when she fell off the ski and into the water around 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, May 11. Officials said a boat ran into her and then continued to drive off, never stopping to check on Adler.
She died from her injuries.
Law enforcement with FWC said they're now focused on identifying the person who was driving the boat when it hit Adler. They described the vessel as a center console boat with a light blue hull.
"It has multiple white outboard engines and may have blue or dark blue bottom paint," FWC said.
After striking Adler, officials said the boat went westbound from Nixon Beach, toward the mainland of Miami.
CBS News Miami reported that family and friends gathered at a service for Adler on Monday morning.
“She was happy and alive and I remember her smile," said Loren Pearson, a family friend, in a statement to CBS Miami. "That is how I remember her.”
Adler's obituary states that she was a ballerina, and appeared in over 100 performances of the Nutcracker with the Miami City Ballet.
"Ella worked hard at everything she did," the obituary reads. "She had a precocious discipline and focus that belied her age. She did not know what it was to work at half-speed. She gave everything her all and because of that, her energy made her stand apart. She worked relentlessly at school where she excelled. She celebrated life."
Anyone who witnessed the incident, has video of it or information regarding the boat and its driver is asked to contact the Wildlife Alert Hotline at 888-404-FWCC (3922) or Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at 305-471-TIPS (8477).
