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For years, Sir Richard Branson’s Necker Island They have worked as a luxurious holiday for elites, including Barack and Michelle Obama, Princess Diana, Robert De Niro, Kate Winslet and Kevin Costner. But behind the picturesque paradise there is a dark past. From natural disasters to unexpected deaths, the 74-acre private island in the British Virgin Islands has a history of mayhem.
The recent tragedy occurred early on August 30th.
According to Royal Virgin Islands Police (RVIPF), Emergency Services were warned of a fatal incident on Saturday. The man was taken to DD Orlando Smith Hospital, where he was later declared dead.
The man died on Branson’s Necker Island on August 30, according to Royal Virgin Island Police (RVIPF). (Getty Images)
Another individual was treated for a life-threatening injury during the incident.
“We express deep sadness to the deceased’s family, friends and colleagues,” a representative of police Jacqueline Vantarpur said in a statement. “This is a tragic event and RVIPF is committed to conducting a thorough investigation.”
A representative for Branson did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
Branson I bought Necker Island in 1979. $180,000 per Branson Virgin website.
According to the mogul, he was “crazy about to come up with a way to impress a fallen girl,” so when he learned that the island was for sale in the Virgin Islands in England, he contacted the real estate agent.
Sir Richard Branson bought the 74-acre island in 1979 for $180,000. (AP)
“We were still in the early days of Virgin Records. I never had the cash to buy the island,” he continued. “Fortunately, the real estate agent didn’t know this and offered us a trip that was paid for all the money to see the islands that weekend.
Branson was originally quoted $6 million, but at the time he couldn’t afford it. He wrote that no one had made the offer a year later, and as Virgin Records got better, he bought the island for just $180,000. He explained, “The only condition was that the resort would have to be built on the island within four years.”
But it wasn’t all smooth sailing in paradise.
Winslet was one of the guests who fled Branson’s residence when he was hit by lightning. (Matt Winkelmeyer/Wireimage)
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In 2011, Branson’s residence was struck by lightning during a tropical storm that lit a fire in the home. 20 guests including Kate Winslet, I safely escaped from the house.
“My sons Sam and ne Jack ran to the house and helped them get out of everyone, and thank Kate Winslet for helping me carry my 90-year-old mother safely out of the main house,” Branson wrote at the time of the incident, believing that the “Titanic” star had saved her mother, Eve.
Sir Richard Branson’s home on Necker Island was damaged in a fire in 2011. (Photo by Patrick T. Fallon / AFP) (Photo by Patrick T. Fallon / AFP
“My mother can walk at 90, but more than anything, it was just to speed up the process. But she was amazing. She pushed her into her arms and left the house as quickly as possible,” Branson told the Telegraph at the time. “When I talk to her, she says it’s like you’re on a movie set waiting for the word ‘cut’, but they don’t come.
But Eve recalls another story.
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“Ah, no! I’m tired of this story,” she said. Guardian 2014. “It was a hurricane hurricane and we were on fire. And if it wasn’t for my grandchildren, we would all survive. It wasn’t for my grandchildren. It was four or five in the morning. [her grandson] Say: “No, not now.”
“Anyway, I just went outside and it rained, and I didn’t have my contact lenses. But I was out and Kate and her two kids were behind me. Then she kindly went to pick me up and that put me in four steps.
Six years later, Necker Island faced serious damage in September 2017 During Hurricane Irma.
Branson Island was devastated from Hurricane Irma in 2017. (AP Photo/Virgin America)
In a blog post on Virgin, the billionaire said he had never seen anything like Hurricane Irma, adding that it was a “traumatic time.”
Branson explained that although the extent of the damage still needs to be assessed, “the house and trees have disappeared” and “the bathroom and bedroom doors and windows are 40 feet away.”
“Many of the Necker buildings and vegetation were either destroyed or severely damaged,” Branson wrote at the time, but his foundation’s Virgin Unite was already working to repair the damage.
Costner and Jewel were once filmed on the island during the Inspiring Children Foundation tennis fundraiser. (Getty Images)
Despite the chaos, the island is also a place to unite families and loved ones.
Last year, Costner and singer Jewel were photographed on the island during a tennis fundraiser for The Inspiring Children Foundation, the organization Jewel started. According to the Daily Mail, Branson was a matchmaker.
In the 1990s, Princess Diana and her family (including Prince William, Prince Harry and her mother Francis Schande Kaide) enjoyed the island’s holidays.
Princess Diana took her children to Necker Island in 1990. (Getty Images)
Former President Barack Obama Michelle Obama stayed on Necker Island in February 2017.
in post On Virgin’s website, Branson wrote that after Obama’s two presidential conditions, he invited the couple to the island for a “full break.”
“It was a great honor to invite President Barack and President Michelle Obama to the British Virgin Islands and get a full break after Barack finished his second term when the president and his family left the White House,” Branson wrote.
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