The sudden death of 33-year-old Irish fashion designer and entrepreneur Martha Nolan-O’Slattara has left the internet spiraling with some really chilling questions. She was found dead at the Montauk Yacht Club back on August 5. For context, Martha was initially based out of Carlow, Ireland. She then moved to New York in 2015, where she pursued a career in advertising and marketing.
All these experiences influenced her creative spirit and entrepreneurial skills. Martha launched her own brand, East x East, with her business partner, Dylan Grace, offering a luxury swimwear line. On the day of her death, she was supposed to meet businessman Christopher Durnan, who wished to invest in her brand.
The evening of August 4, Martha and Christopher took a boat out to discuss the potential investment. They departed from Durnan’s dock with plans of drinking champagne and watching sunsets. According to her friends and boyfriend Nick DiRubio, she was supposed to return home by 1 a.m. after taking a cab. However, as the hour passed, the entrepreneur suddenly stopped receiving or sending any messages, which sparked curiosity among her friends about her whereabouts.
In a group chat with Martha’s friends, one of her buddies wrote in the group chat, “lmao. I’m sure her phone died. Or maybe she’s dead.” The seemingly harmless message prompted a response from Martha minutes later, when she replied, “Lol, I’m at the yacht club now, my phone is on.”
Still no answers 3 months after NYC designer Martha Nolan-O’Slatarra was found dead on Montauk boat https://t.co/xIGrbhJkXC pic.twitter.com/qjcFZzt5bS
— New York Post (@nypost) November 15, 2025
Shockingly, within an hour of this last message, Martha Nolan was found dead on the yacht itself. She was found slumped and unresponsive by the authorities. From the looks of her body, the police and officers could not find any sign of violence.
They tried to revive her using CPR, but it was too late. Thus, Martha Nolan was pronounced dead at the scene, according to the New York Post. Beside the preliminary autopsy, a toxicology report is still expected, which will reveal if there was any foul play at work, in the case of any drug being involved. Her cause and manner of death remain unanswered, as Martha’s family and friends mourn her loss. As a young entrepreneur, her life was marked by determination and ambition.
Beyond her unexplained death, attention has also been drawn towards the kind of text messages she received from her friends hours before passing away. The jokes about her being dead have shocked those who knew her. One of her friends underlined the irony of those messages and shared, “It’s haunting. None of us imagined anything like this could happen. At the time, we laughed, thinking it was silly – we had no idea.”
MARTHA NOLAN-O’SLATARRA was found dead on a boat docked at Long Island’s Montauk Yacht Club after a sail with its owner & her investor, CHRISTOPHER DURNAN – Officials found no signs of violence on her body, deepening the mystery of the grim discovery
— charles benjamin (@chaleeboh3131) November 15, 2025
The case is still under investigation by the Suffolk County Police. As per a passerby turned witness, Christopher Durnan was spotted running without clothes on the dock of the boat, shouting for help and throwing sunscreen at a nearby boat as well. It was this bystander who dialed 911. Martha’s friends have questioned this unusual behavior of the business partner and asked, “I think for me it’s like, ‘Why is the man na–d, right?’ That’s the part where I’m like: ‘Did something happen to this girl?”
Countering allegations, Christopher’s lawyer revealed that he had to remove all his clothes on the dock because they were soaked in Martha’s vomit. The business executive reported that Nolan had collapsed around 10:30-11 p.m. that night. The exact reason for her health decline is not known yet.
His lawyer also added that Durnan had tried performing CPR on Martha as soon as she collapsed, but could not revive her. Interestingly, the police have not ruled out the possibility that Christopher did not call 911, and that the bystander did. More details are expected as the investigation continues.
