Tributes pour in for beloved Brit travel influencer who died suddenly on 'dream' trip to Sri Lanka
6 February 2025, 08:23 | Updated: 6 February 2025, 12:12
A British tourist who died while on holiday in Sri Lanka has been named as travel influencer Ebony McIntosh.
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Tributes have poured in for the “beautiful” 24-year-old who was just four days into her holiday when she began vomiting, suffering from nausea and breathing difficulties.
McIntosh was staying at the Miracle Colombo City hostel when her symptoms began to show.
The hotel has since been closed by investigators. It has been claimed that the room next to her had been fumigated for bedbugs just before she died.
A German couple staying in the same room as Ebony have shown similar symptoms.
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Local media claims the room next to Ebony’s had been fumigated for bedbugs just days before she fell ill.
However, it is yet to be confirmed if this played a role in the influencer’s death - with an exact cause yet to be given.
Tributes have poured following Ebony’s death, with her sister India posting: "To my Ebony, my beautiful sister, thank you, thank you for being my older sister, one better than I could've ever asked for.
"I am truly heartbroken, I can't believe I am writing this, it feels like some nightmare I haven't woken up from yet. We will get justice for you, you had so much life left to live."
Her family have since set up a GoFundMe page to cover travel and funeral expenses, hoping to raise £22,000.
On the fundraiser, India wrote: "Her trip was cruelly cut short on Saturday 1st February, when she took very ill in the hostel she was staying in… She sadly and tragically passed away within a few hours of arriving at the hospital, they couldn't save our beautiful girl.
"We need to be with our beautiful Ebony as soon as possible, we hate the thought of her being alone in a foreign country.
"We want to be able to bring her back home safely to rest. We just need to look after our angel."
£20,000 has already been raised in the beloved influencer’s honour.
Paying tribute, her friend took to social media and said: “I am absolutely broken. Ebony was one of the kindest, funniest, and most determined people I’ve ever known.
"She had the biggest dreams, and she deserved to live them all.”
