Vale Suzannah Vaughan

WESTERN Australian sea captain Suzannah Vaughan died suddenly last week aboard her ship in the Bay of Bengal, off the coast of India. The 35-year-old captain had been appointed by a Norway-based company to manage the first floating production storage and offloading vessel to work offshore India. She took up the new post in August, leaving her position with Australia FPSO Management off WA’s north-west coast. Ms Vaughan began her sailing career when she was 16 years of age, as a trainee aboard the STS Leeuwin, and was selected two years later for a world voyage on the STS Young Endeavour. She achieved numerous career milestones, becoming the first Australian female facility supervisor of an FPSO vessel at the age of 29, and in 2006 was the first female and youngest-ever offshore installation manager of an oil-producing facility. Ms Vaughan received a number of accolades in her short career, including last year’s Veuve Clicquot Award, which recognises visionary female business leaders. She was also a two-time winner of the WA Business News 40under40 Awards. A memorial service for Ms Vaughan will be held tomorrow, Friday October 24, at Christ Church Claremont at 2pm