ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – A 26-year-old woman who died in July after rear-ending a semitruck in Lake Nona has been identified as Ariana Viera, who was the reigning Miss Venezuela, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.
Viera crashed the night of July 13 along southbound Boggy Creek Road, north of J. Lawson Boulevard, and was pronounced dead at a hospital before 1 a.m. the following day, troopers said.
Recommended Videos
A crash report states the semitruck ahead of Viera was slowing down for a red light as the 26-year-old failed to do the same, striking the rear of the semitruck in a Mazda CX-30 that came to final rest in the right turn lane of Boggy Creek Road. The driver of the semitruck — a 51-year-old Atlanta man — was hospitalized for treatment of minor injuries, according to FHP.
A writeup on Marca.com about Viera’s death cites an interview between Telemundo31 and Vivian Ochoa, who is identified in the article as Viera’s mother. In part, it states the beauty queen was set to participate in upcoming pageants, such as 2023 Miss Latin America and Miss World 2023.
[EXCLUSIVE: Become a News 6 Insider (it’s FREE) | PINIT! Share your photos]
In a July 20 tribute post on Viera’s Instagram account, translated from Spanish, Ochoa wrote in sorrow to her “other half.”
“God is the only one who can understand this emptiness I have inside of me with the absence of your body in this earthly world,” Ochoa’s post reads. “...(The) way you manifest in my days, it’s incredible and you don’t know how much I appreciate it my beloved daughter, I will do all your will, I swear my love.”
According to Marca.com and other news outlets, Ariana’s father lives in Peru and had applied for a humanitarian visa in order to join his family in the U.S. following his daughter’s death, yet the visa was granted a day after Ariana’s funeral.
Ochoa told Telemundo she believes Ariana fell asleep at the wheel when she crashed.
Ariana worked in real estate and also with the family’s business — a cleaning service provider called Full House Cleaning — where she served as its CEO, according to her Instagram account.
Ochoa has since established a GoFundMe account which you can access by clicking here.
Get today’s headlines in minutes with Your Florida Daily: