[Archive 2009-03-17] British actress Natasha Richardson reportedly brain dead after skiing accident

Historical archive — originally published 2009-03-17. This report records what was known on that date. It is not current news; subsequent events may have changed the situation. Wikinews closed in May 2026.

According to conflicting reports, British actress Natasha Richardson is brain dead following a severe head injury from a skiing accident on Monday. The New York Post reported that friends of Richardson said she "was brain dead", after earlier reporting that she was "dead". They later issued a correction which said she was brain dead. Other media reports say that her brain is severely swollen. Fox News Channel also reports Richardson as brain dead.

Richardson was transported by plane from Sacré-Coeur Hospital in Montreal, Canada to a care facility in New York City in the United States. She remains in very critical condition and reports say she is not likely to survive. Once in the U.S., she will be taken off life support.

Richardson, 45, was taking a private skiing lesson in Mont-Tremblant in Quebec when reports say she fell, hitting her head. Despite the fall, witnesses say she did not appear to have been seriously injured. An hour after the fall and after she returned to her hotel room, Richardson began to feel ill and was taken to a local hospital. She was later transported to Sacré-Coeur Hospital.

Richardson's husband, actor Liam Neeson, has left Toronto where he was filming a movie and will be with Natasha when she arrives in the U.S.. He was acting in the movie 'Chloe', which was being filmed in the area. Both were staying at the resort in Mont-Tremblant. The couple have two children who were also staying with them, Daniel Jack age 12 and Micheal Richard Antonio age 13. They are said to have been skiing with their mother when she fell.

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