She wasn't mega famous, but Im sure some of you will know her face. This is truly tragic news.

Model Heather Bratton died on Saturday, July 22 in a tragic car accident

from stormmodels.com

We are saddened to inform you of the sudden and tragic death of Heather Bratton. She passed away in a car accident, on Saturday, 22 July.

Storm send our love and condolences to the Bratton family.

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Turnpike crash kills 1, injures 3

Sunday, July 23, 2006

A 19-year-old Florida woman was killed and three other people were hurt early yesterday when three cars collided on the New Jersey Turnpike in Newark, State Police said.

The accident occurred just after 5 a.m. on the southbound off-ramp leading to Interchanges 14A, B and C. State Police Sgt. Jeanne Hengemuhle said a 2003 Ford Crown Victoria was stopped for an unknown reason in the ramp's center lane when it was rear-ended by a 1996 Toyota RAV4. The Crown Victoria shot forward and smashed into the back of a 2005 Toyota Sienna, which had stopped to assist the Crown Victoria, Hengemuhle said.

Both the Crown Victoria and RAV4 burst into flames. The Florida woman, who was sitting in the back seat of the Crown Victoria, was trapped inside the vehicle and died in the fire, Hengemuhle said. The woman has not been identified.

The car's driver, 30-year-old Selim Koskar of Brooklyn, suffered burns throughout his body and was taken to Saint Barnabas Medical Center for treatment.
The driver of the RAV4, 22-year-old Ramon Sanchez of Jersey City, suffered broken ribs and facial lacerations, Hengemuhle said. Yoa Murry, 44, of the Bronx, who was driving the Sienna, suffered burns to his right leg. Both Sanchez and Murry were taken to University Hospital in Newark, Hengemuhle said.
The accident forced authorities to close the Interchange for more than five hours. It was reopened at around 10:15 a.m.

from fashionweekdaily:
(NEW YORK) After a flurry of Internet rumors sparked speculation in the fashion world, the unfortunate gossip has been confirmed: model Heather Bratton was killed in a car crash over the weekend. The 19-year-old Tampa, Fl. native, described by those in the industry as “smart and soft spoken,” was en route to Newark International Airport in a taxi that was struck by another vehicle. In her first fashion season, Bratton walked for style luminaries like Chanel, Dior, Marc Jacobs, and Prada. She also starred in this season’s Balenciaga campaign and was the focus of Steven Meisel’s recent cover of Vogue Italia.
When called for comment, Bratton’s American agency, Women Management, said, “What happened is horrible and our week has been very sad…we love Heather.”

If you wish, you may leave messages for her family at: http://www.heatherbratton.com/







R.I.P. Heather

This Is So Saddddddddddd...... I Loved Her

I had no idea about her until the vouge cover.then I adore her.So sad.

r.i.p

She was one of the most unique upcoming faces in fashion. Her career was just starting and she had already nabbed so many high profile campaigns and been heralded as 'the next big thing', she could have had an amazing career/future ahead of her.

So young, such a waste

models.com had her ranked at No. 24:

With "cheekbones like geometry and eyes like sin" Heather is another Young American who made a massive splash at the European shows, catwalking for everyone from Gucci and Prada to Lanvin and Chloe. One could bet one's house on the sentiment that this girl is going to extraordinarily major.

From the moment we saw her first Polaroids at the Supreme offices, MDC was convinced a new star had hit the scene. It was those haunting eyes and those cheekbones, the way they cut and jut and aligned to form planes and angles not seen since early 90’s Kate Moss. And though Heather booked nary a blue chip show in the S/S 06 NY show sweepstakes the 18 year old Orlando, Florida model easily made OTM’s Top Ten Newcomers list for that season. It took Milan to get it, with Heather being the only first season girl on the S/S 06 market to walk the Prada, Miu Miu, Gucci, Burberry and Jil Sander shows in Milan before heading to Paris for Chanel, Lanvin and Chloe.

Since then Heather shot four times consecutively for Italian Vogue w. Meisel and the soft-spoken American was heading into the Fall/Winter shows with maximum velocity. It is however, this February cover of Italian Vogue, beautifully timed to overlap into the NY, Milan and Paris shows, that will now sky-rocket Miss Bratton to a place of enviable visibility, the kind that will have clients clamouring.

In December of last year, when OTM caught up with Heather she divulged that the first thing she plans to buy with her first big check is a Dodge Charger, testifying that innocence still lives in America. And it was Heather who caught the irony that she was the girl “in high school that nobody wanted to talk to.” Well wait until they see this cover!