Former 'Top Chef' star Naomi Pomeroy has died at the age of 49 following a tubing accident in Oregon, the Benton County Sheriff's Office announced on its Facebook account Tuesday (July 16).
Pomeroy was tubing with her husband, Kyle Linden Webster, and another individual on the Willamette River when the vessel was caught on an "exposed snag in the water," according to the department. The world-renowned chef was then pulled under the water and trapped by a paddle board leash attached to her, police confirmed.
The group was reported to have tied their inner tubes and paddle board together prior to the fatal incident occurring. The Corvallis Fire Department's search for Pomeroy's body is ongoing, while Webster and the other individual from their group were rescued on the shoreline.
“I am dedicated to locating Naomi to bring her home to her family and loved ones,” Sheriff Van Arsdall said in the Facebook post.
Pomeroy gained notoriety in the Portland culinary scene after opening her farm-to-table restaurant, Beast, in 2007, which won her the James Beard Award, given to the Best Chef in the Northwest, in 2014, according to the Oregonian. Beast was closed in May 2020, but rebranded as Ripe Cooperative shortly after, though that too faced a forced closure in October 2022.
Pomeroy is best known for appearing on the Bravo cooking show 'Top Chef Masters' in 2011, finishing fourth in the competition and winning $26,800, as well as later appearances on 'Top Chef' as a guest judge and guest diner. The chef recently co-owned the Portland cocktail bar Expatriate with her husband and was set to open a new bistro restaurant in the Northwest city, according to the Oregonian.