The Miami-Dade Medical Examiner Department released Thursday the cause of death for two girls killed in Monday’s sailboat crash off Miami Beach.
According to the medical examiner’s report, 7-year-old Mila Yankelevich and 13-year-old Erin Ko Han died from accidental drowning.
The two girls were among five campers and a camp counselor who were on the sailboat when it was struck by a barge in Biscayne Bay, between Hibiscus Island and Monument Island, authorities said. The sailboat was dragged under the barge which had a crane on top and what appeared to be pilings for a dock.
The U.S. Coast Guard said the barge had been supporting construction work in the Miami Beach area prior to the accident.
An 8-year-old girl and an 11-year-old girl injured in the crash remain at Jackson Memorial Hospital. A 12-year-old girl and a 19-year old woman were evaluated after the crash but were not taken to a hospital. Their names have not been released.
The children were part of a summer sailing camp operated by the Miami Yacht Club and affiliated with the Miami Youth Sailing Foundation.
Student from Chile killed in the crash: “She was a light for us”
Ko Han, who was from Chile, moved with her family to the United States in 2024. That’s according to her former school, Colegio San Pedro Nolasco Vitacura in Santiago, which posted her obituary on Facebook.
“Erin left a mark that’s indelible. It’s indelible. So that’s very important for us to pass that on. While she was here, she was a light for us, for our school,” elementary school director Francisca Aburto said. “For me, I also taught Erin before taking over as principal. I was her teacher in fifth grade, and in sixth grade. It was a wonderful experience.”
Ko Han’s former homeroom teacher Paula Escobar said: “She was a beautiful, happy, healthy girl who had her whole life ahead of her.”
Prominent Argentine family mourns loss of daughter, granddaughter
Yankelevich was the youngest daughter of television producer and director Tomas Yankelevich and actress Sofia Reca.
Her grandparents are Cris Morena and Gustavo Yankelevich, two prominent Argentine media producers. They flew to Miami on Wednesday to be with family.
Marcelo Tinelli, a friend of the family and popular Argentine television host, posted on X that he was “devastated” by Mila’s death.
“I can’t believe it,” he wrote. “My immense love to the entire family, who are part of my life.”
Mila, who lived in both Surfside and Argentina with her family, is remembered as a joyful child who loved dancing, singing and dressing up in costumes.
U.S. Coast Guard’s ongoing investigation
The Coast Guard, which is the lead agency in the crash investigation, said Tuesday it will be thorough.
“Know that we grieve with you. We will not take this lightly and we will not forget. We owe you answers and we are committed to finding them,” Coast Guard Miami Sector Commander Frank Florio said.
Coast Guard officials said all of the children were wearing life jackets at the time of the collision.
Florio said they have interviewed the captain of the tugboat that was piloting the barge.
“We did do alcohol testing and we have conducted the chemical testing as well,” he said.
Those test results are pending.
The Coast Guard has asked the public for any information they may have on the crash. They said they are casting a wide net hoping to get as much information as possible for investigators.
Ted Scouten and
Mauricio Maldonado
contributed to this report.
