Sahara Ray’s sister breaks silence following model’s death at 34

Sahara Ray's sister has broken her silence and paid an emotional tribute to her following her tragic death aged just 34.

The mum's devastated loved ones confirmed her death in a statement to TMZ on Monday (19 October) in which they said she was 'so loved' and 'surrounded by family'.

Sahara, who was the founder of her swimwear brand Sahara Ray Swim, was the daughter of surfer Tony Ray, and had previously been romantically linked to Justin Bieber.

Ray has nearly 900,000 followers on Instagram and more recently, shared emotional posts with her little girl Snow after becoming a mum in January.

In July this year, she shared what would become her last social media post showing photos of her little daughter smiling to the camera.

"Sahara has moved from this life into another"

Now, her younger sister Ruby Ray has shared a carousel of throwback snaps and written a heartbreaking memorial to her describing her as 'a force of nature'.

In a post on Instagram, she penned: "The most vivacious, intelligent, hilarious, kind, empathetic and breathtakingly beautiful soul. A force of nature.

"A light so bright that this world feels impossibly dimmer without her in it.

"Sahara has moved from this life into another, and I am left trying to comprehend how someone so full of life can no longer be here to live it.

"From the moment I entered this world, I looked up to her. In my eyes, she was everything extraordinary about being human.

"She was magic, she was warmth, she was laughter, she was love. She was, to me, the most incredible person to ever walk this earth."

The post continued: "I don’t think there are words in any language capable of holding the weight of this heartbreak. I don’t know how to make sense of a world that keeps turning when mine feels as though it has stopped.

"God, grief hurts. It is the most excruciating, all-consuming pain I have ever been doused in.

"And beneath all this grief, all this disbelief, all this unbearable heartache, is the simplest, most devastating truth. I just want my big sister.

"If love alone could have kept you here, Sahara, you would have lived a thousand lifetimes. I will spend the rest of mine loving you."

A cause of death has not been confirmed.

Sahara had previously spoken out about her health issues, revealing that she had been diagnosed with the auto-immune disease Guillain-Barre syndrome in 2024.

Sahara said she ended up with the condition following a car crash and said it had left her partially paralysed.

Her mother Gretchen Bach has also paid tribute, telling the Daily Mail: “Sahara was an incredibly passionate and kind young woman who loved her family, fashion, her daughter Snow, and surfing.

“We're feeling the love that is pouring in from her cherished friends, fans and the many communities that she was part of around the world.”