THE LIFE support system for a 16-year-old Australian girl, injured in a freak yachting accident, was turned off last night at the Bangkok Hospital Phuket.
Ali van Os, from Darwin, was ''an amazing young woman,'' a family friend said. She would be remembered as a beautiful and entrancing girl.
Visitors who have seen the teenager in her hospital bed say she looked just like a sleeping princess.
The time came, though, when her parents, noted children's author Joanne van Os and barrister Lex Silvester, had to make the heartbreaking decision to turn off Ali's life support system.
Ali's organs will now be used in a series of transplants that will save the lives of others.
The fatal mishap occurred on February 18 at the Yacht Haven marina, on the north east coast of Phuket.
A superyacht sailed to dock at the marina, then surged as it was tying up. A large mooring rope snapped free and struck Ali.
A Thai worker had his leg broken in the incident.
''Ali's just one of those people that's just so engaging,'' family friend Terri Robson told The Australian newspaper. ''People were entranced by her.''
With a deep passion for yachts and sailing, Ali had been with her parents on a friend's boat when the big yacht sailed in and she rushed over to have a closer look.
Her family, on a round-the-world sailing trip, told the newspaper that Ali received ''world-class''' care.
But she had lost a lot of blood and tests showed her brain was not functioning.
In the days since the incident, many family members had travelled to Phuket to hold a vigil by Ali's bedside, Ms Robson said.
''She's not feeling any pain - the pain is obviously with her family and friends.''
Thai authorities are investigating. A full inquiry is anticipated.
Ali van Os, from Darwin, was ''an amazing young woman,'' a family friend said. She would be remembered as a beautiful and entrancing girl.
Visitors who have seen the teenager in her hospital bed say she looked just like a sleeping princess.
The time came, though, when her parents, noted children's author Joanne van Os and barrister Lex Silvester, had to make the heartbreaking decision to turn off Ali's life support system.
Ali's organs will now be used in a series of transplants that will save the lives of others.
The fatal mishap occurred on February 18 at the Yacht Haven marina, on the north east coast of Phuket.
A superyacht sailed to dock at the marina, then surged as it was tying up. A large mooring rope snapped free and struck Ali.
A Thai worker had his leg broken in the incident.
''Ali's just one of those people that's just so engaging,'' family friend Terri Robson told The Australian newspaper. ''People were entranced by her.''
With a deep passion for yachts and sailing, Ali had been with her parents on a friend's boat when the big yacht sailed in and she rushed over to have a closer look.
Her family, on a round-the-world sailing trip, told the newspaper that Ali received ''world-class''' care.
But she had lost a lot of blood and tests showed her brain was not functioning.
In the days since the incident, many family members had travelled to Phuket to hold a vigil by Ali's bedside, Ms Robson said.
''She's not feeling any pain - the pain is obviously with her family and friends.''
Thai authorities are investigating. A full inquiry is anticipated.
