‘Top Chef Masters’ Star Naomi Pomeroy Dead at 49 Following Tubing Accident

'Top Chef Masters' star Naomi Pomeroy has passed away at age 49 following a tubing accident in Oregon.

According to Portland Monthly, the Portland-area chef's family believes she died from drowning in the Willamette River on July 13.

On July 14, Benton County Patrol Lieutenant Toby Bottorff revealed that an unidentified woman had gone under the water while tubing and had not come back up, per People.

Pomeroy is survived by her husband, Kyle Webster, and her daughter August, 23.

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The chef made a name for herself on cooking competition shows like Iron Chef in 2010 and Top Chef Masters in 2011 before becoming a guest judge on Bobby's Triple Threat in 2023.

Pomeroy was an Oregon native born in Corvallis in 1974. She launched her first culinary venture at age 24 with Ripe Catering in 1999.

She later launched dining spots Gotham Coffee Shop in 2002, Clarklewis in 2004 and Gotham Tavern in 2005. She and Webster also collaborated to open cocktail bar Expatriate in 2013.

She followed those up with cozy restaurant Beast in 2007, which later morphed into Ripe Cooperative in 2020, a marketplace and restaurant.

Pomeroy also owned a flower shop that housed her most recent project, a frozen custard shop called Cornet Custard.

The busy chef was also a cookbook author, releasing Taste & Technique in 2016.

In 2014, she was recognized for her culinary excellence with a James Beard Award for Best Chef Pacific Northwest.

"What a loss. Naomi was not just a fabulous chef and entrepreneur, but an amazing human being. Her impact went far beyond Portland, helping establish our leadership and reputation for food excellence. She will be greatly missed," Oregon Congressman Earl Blumenauer said, per People.

Fellow chef Tom Colicchio posted on Twitter/X, "Just horrible news, we lost another great chef. My heart goes out to Naomi’s family."

Most recently, Pomeroy was working on Garden Party, her summer-exclusive garden dinners in Southeast Portland.